Toothpick thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
British Galleries, Room 58

Toothpick

ca. 1630-60 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
This toothpick is in the form of an enamelled gold arm that holds a curved sickle for picking teeth. At the other end it has a death's-head finial (the decorative knob). Elaborately decorated toothpicks had a long tradition. In the Middle Ages they were often made from the claws of birds, especially the bittern, a long-legged water bird.

Subjects Depicted
The toothpick shows an ingenious use of the popular contemporary imagery of death: the arm is surmounted by a skull and holds the sickle of Father Time. Once again the message is 'Remember you must die'. The straightforward interpretation is that just as someone in the 16th and early 17th centuries might wear a pendant jewel in the form of a coffin, or wear a ring enamelled with a death's head, so she or he might use a toothpick in the form of Father Time's sickle. The certainty of death should be remembered at all times.

But would people who enjoyed William Shakespeare (1564-1616) or the ingenious poetry of John Donne (1572-1631) perhaps also have had a wry smile about the clever idea of picking their teeth with Father Time's sickle? Might they even have enjoyed the paradox that picking their teeth with the Grim Reaper's sickle would actually slow down decay?


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Enamelled gold, set with a ruby
Dimensions
  • Estimated length: 3.8cm
  • Estimated depth: 0.6cm
  • Across sickle width: 1.2cm
Dimensions checked: Measured; 02/06/2000 by NH/KB Dimensions checked ('measured') through display glass
Gallery label
British Galleries: Skulls were popular on jewellery. Like the Latin inscription 'memento mori' ('remember you must die'), they repeated the message that death is inevitable, even for those surrounded by luxuries. This jewelled toothpick ingeniously reminded the user of death and decay as he picked his teeth with Father Time's sickle.(27/03/2003)
Credit line
Bequeathed by Frank Ward
Object history
Possibly made in England

Aspects of Age Exhibition RF.2005/727
Summary
Object Type
This toothpick is in the form of an enamelled gold arm that holds a curved sickle for picking teeth. At the other end it has a death's-head finial (the decorative knob). Elaborately decorated toothpicks had a long tradition. In the Middle Ages they were often made from the claws of birds, especially the bittern, a long-legged water bird.

Subjects Depicted
The toothpick shows an ingenious use of the popular contemporary imagery of death: the arm is surmounted by a skull and holds the sickle of Father Time. Once again the message is 'Remember you must die'. The straightforward interpretation is that just as someone in the 16th and early 17th centuries might wear a pendant jewel in the form of a coffin, or wear a ring enamelled with a death's head, so she or he might use a toothpick in the form of Father Time's sickle. The certainty of death should be remembered at all times.

But would people who enjoyed William Shakespeare (1564-1616) or the ingenious poetry of John Donne (1572-1631) perhaps also have had a wry smile about the clever idea of picking their teeth with Father Time's sickle? Might they even have enjoyed the paradox that picking their teeth with the Grim Reaper's sickle would actually slow down decay?
Collection
Accession number
M.32-1960

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Record createdMarch 27, 2003
Record URL
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