Censer ball

A sphere-shaped censer with a hollow interior. An openwork object, inlaid with silver thread in the motif of an irregular, interlaced grid. The holes for the smoke to escape are placed freely and evenly across the entire surface of the sphere. A fine engraved floral ornament is densely and tightly filling the entire surface. The censer opens in the middle, inside the sphere there is a small vessel for incense, suspended on rims. The object comes from the Middle East and is dated to the 19th century. Censer is a vessel designed to burn incense or perfume in solid form. These containers varied greatly in size, form and construction material in different cultures or countries. They were used for both secular and sacred purposes since the ancient times. They were used to purify the air of pathogens in the event of an epidemiological emergency, to perfume rooms during feasts or ceremonies, and even to measure time during rituals and ceremonies, when the progress of burning cone incense was measured. The incense sticks are burned by placing them directly on a heat source or on a hot metal plate in a censer. Small, concave charcoal briquettes were sold for domestic use. A corner of the briquette was lit, then placed in a censer and finally the flame was extinguished. After the glowing sparks had traversed the entire briquette, it was ready to place the incense on it.