Rare Taino Wood Snuff Tube – Cohoba Inhaler w/ Shell Teeth

This extraordinary pre-Columbian Taino Arawak Cohoba inhaler is an extremely rare ceremonial artifact, masterfully hand-carved in wood—a highly perishable medium seldom surviving from the pre-contact Caribbean. Rendered in the form of a seated Zemi anthropomorphic figure with arms dramatically raised above the head, the piece emanates both spiritual intensity and elite craftsmanship. The figure’s face is striking, with deeply incised circular eyes, a sharply ridged nose, and a broad mouth inlaid with white shell teeth. The shell, considered sacred by the Taino, signals the object’s elevated ritual status and underscores its symbolic function as a conduit to the spiritual world.

Intricate geometric carvings cover the limbs, torso, and cranial surface, echoing the visual language of Arawak cosmology. The pose—knees drawn upward and arms lifted high—reflects shamanic invocation or transformation, typical of spiritual ecstasy induced during the Cohoba ceremony. Extending from the upraised hands are twin perforated nasal tubes used to administer Cohoba, a psychoactive powder derived from Anadenanthera peregrina seeds. A third opening at the base connects with these ducts, completing a sacred instrument used exclusively by shamans (bohíques) to enter trance states, communicate with zemis (ancestral spirits), and receive visions.

What makes this piece especially significant is its material. While Cohoba inhalers are typically encountered in stone or ceramic, surviving wooden examples are almost unheard of due to the tropical climate and centuries of exposure. The wood’s natural separations and age fissures are authentic indicators of its antiquity and lend further credibility to its origin. Despite these age-related shifts, the figure remains exceptionally well preserved, with all key features intact. It is presented on a custom stand that reinforces its stature as a sacred object.

To date, no other wooden Taino Cohoba inhaler of this quality and completeness is known to have emerged on the open market, underscoring the exceptional rarity of this example. For reference, Sotheby’s offered a comparable wooden Cohoba inhaler in their African, Oceanic, and Pre-Columbian Art sale, Lot 11, May 2010, and realized $290,500.

Created by the Taino, principal inhabitants of the Greater Antilles before European contact, this inhaler was not a common ritual tool but a sacred implement reserved for high-ranking spiritual leaders. Its complex iconography, rare medium, and remarkable preservation make it a museum-caliber artifact and an unparalleled acquisition for serious collectors of Caribbean and pre-Columbian art.

Hispaniola, ca. 1300-1500 AD. Measures: 9″/22.86 cm in height; 10.5″/26.67 cm on custom stand.

Provenance: Private USA collection, acquired 1950 through 1980, thence to current owner by inheritance.