Inside the Box: Pangolin scales

穿山甲

By Mai Wah board member Richard Gibson. Translation of artifact label by Siwen Liu; research by Curator Janna Norby.

The pangolin scales in the Wah Chong Tai Mercantile are from the closing of the store in the 1940s when Charlie Bovey bought the contents and took everything to Nevada City. Most of the boxes and packages still hold their original contents.

click to enlarge

The Chinese pangolin, Manis pentadactyla, is an insectivorous mammal native to southern China. Pangolins are burrowing animals with scaly skins, similar in appearance to armadillos. It is sometimes called the scaly anteater. Extensively hunted in Viet Nam (and nearly wiped out there) and elsewhere as a food delicacy, pangolins are considered to be endangered. In China they are protected under the Wild Animal Protection Law of 1989, but pangolin scales can still be purchased on the internet. No good figures exist for pangolin populations.

Pangolin scales (chuan shan jia) in traditional Chinese medicine are thought to disperse blood stasis, unblock menses, and promote lactation. They supposedly reduce swellings and enhance discharge of pus from boils. Scales such as those formerly sold in the Wah Chong Tai Mercantile would have been baked, then ground up to a powder and simmered with water to prepare a decoction.

Pangolin photo via Wikipedia (public domain). Artifact photos by Richard Gibson. The Wah Chong Tai Mercantile exhibit is made possible by a loan from the Montana Heritage Commission, and significant financial support from the Confucius Institute of the University of Montana.

Artifact of the Month: Shark Fins

By Mai Wah Curator Janna Norby

The shark fins in the Wah Chong Tai Mercantile are from the closing of the store in the early 1940s when Charlie Bovey bought the contents and took everything to Nevada City.

The benefits of shark fin, documented by old Chinese medical books, include the following:

Wah Chong Tai Mercantile collection (c. 1940)

• rejuvenation
• appetite enhancement
• nourishing to blood
• beneficial to vital energy
• strength to kidneys, lungs, and bones

Shark fin treatments generally come in tablet or powder form for medicinal use. In Chinese shops such as the Wah Chong Tai, you could buy whole dried shark fin.

Though few medical studies have been completed and little or no proof has been provided, shark fin has been touted as a cancer treatment, a sexual potency booster, skin quality enhancer, heart disease prevention, and a means of lowering cholesterol and providing balance to qi, energy.

魚翅      Shark Fin Soup 

 Shark fin soup has been a popular Chinese delicacy since the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), when it was considered to be a luxury item for the elite. Today, animal rights organizations and others oppose the inhumane treatment of sharks in harvesting, and some nations, states, and cities ban the use of shark fins for soup or other purposes.

Research and text by Janna Norby. Photo by Dick Gibson. The Wah Chong Tai Mercantile exhibit is made possible by a loan from the Montana Heritage Commission, and significant financial support from the Confucius Institute of the University of Montana.