Oročen Berel’tuev (Tepkegir) recalls the use of tobacco pouches

"Long ago, the elders never left the house without their tobacco pouches. They put tobacco into the pouch, and the older people smoked pipes. That’s how it was back then. My father, Stepan, also had such a pouch. The pouch was made from musk deer leather. How do I know? The elders said it was made from musk deer leather. Musk deer leather is elastic and thin. They filled the pouch with tobacco, then put the tobacco into the pipe and smoked. That’s how it was in the past, many elders always carried a pouch, and my father had one too. Tsyren Stepanov was with us in Kynkeser, and they lit the fire in the stove. My father came and sat down next to the stove. When my father took out his pipe, Tsyren took the hot coals with tongs and lit the pipe, and so they smoked the tobacco. That’s how it was when I was little, before the war. To prepare the leather for the pouch, they first soaked it in kefir, then in milk, and added a little flour, which made it soft. Polkovnik also made boots, hats, and bags this way."(Video in preparation)

Recorded by Mariia Bel’tueva. Ulyunchan, 2024.