Cellulose nitrate nail buffer from dresser set owned by Lena Horne: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This a nail buffer made of chamois leather and semi-translucent orange Bakelite plastic. The object has design embellishments of black and gold designs in the art deco style on the wide flat lid. There is a triangular handle rising from the center of the lid. The light colored, rounded chamois leather buffer is attached to the underside of the lid by a plastic band wrapped around its base.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: mid 20th Century
• Manufactured by: Agalin, French
• Used by: Lena Horne, American, 1917 - 2010
• Type: equipment for personal use: grooming, hygiene and health care
• Medium: Bakelite (TM) and chamois
• Dimensions: 6 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 7/8 in. (15.9 x 3.8 x 4.8 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Beauty culture
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: 2011.27.2.3a
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The displayed image also has an explicit CC0 designation. The underlying object's rights statement is: No Known Copyright Restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.