The book is an in-depth survey of betel bags housed at the national museums in Sri Lanka. A comprehensive study with numerous illustrations of the exhibits in colour and drawings of the betel-bags, it begins with a discussion on the use of betel in the country from historical perspective referring to legends, historical-religious literature and excavated finds that have revealed small bronze lime boxes and other artefacts. It describes the diverse shapes and sizes of the betel-bags, the cloth used and the embroidered conventional designs on them. It features the betel bags housed in the museums classifying them according to their size, shape, and features relating to whether they are plain or embroidered. It takes up each featured exhibit in detail with reference to the collection to which it belongs, its past, its dimensions and appearance, and its designs.