Mopjestrommels or Songbook boxes were usually made of whalebone, wood and turtle shell. They appeared in the last quarter of the 17th century in the northern Netherlands and are a typical example of Dutch folk art. The word 'mopjes' as in ‘mopjestrommel’, is Dutch for ‘tunes’ or ‘songs ’. In the seventeenth century ladies from the Zaanstreek area kept their songbooks in boxes like these, which they would take with them when they went to church or visited friends for tea so that they could make music together. They were carried by the arm using the tall handle. This miniature is a true-to-life copy of a full-sized songbook box, which was made of staves held together by metal bands.