Maybe it was packaging from another item.
Maybe it was designed for a purpose so specific that neither of us had ever encountered it before.
The less we knew, the more imaginative our explanations became.
At one point, my girlfriend suggested it might be part of a discontinued beauty trend.
That seemed surprisingly plausible.
The beauty industry introduces countless tools and gadgets every year.
Some become staples.
Others disappear almost immediately.
Perhaps we had stumbled upon the fossilized remains of a forgotten trend.
The Importance of Context
One lesson emerged repeatedly throughout our investigation.
Objects are easier to understand when viewed in context.
A screwdriver makes sense in a toolbox.
A spatula makes sense in a kitchen.
A toothbrush makes sense in a bathroom.
Remove the context, and even familiar items can become confusing.
This mysterious object had lost its context.
It existed in isolation.
Without packaging, instructions, or accompanying components, identifying it became dramatically more difficult.
