Patent ID: 8360235

Claim:
A generally cylindrical smokeless tobacco container having a circular cross-section and a diameter greater than its height dimension, comprising: a first and second portions, each of said portions comprising a base wall and an upstanding side wall with a generally circular outermost edge around the periphery of the base wall and being rotatably engageable with each other to define a space with said circular outermost edges of each of the upstanding side wall in abutment with one another, said first portion comprising an engaging element and a release element and said second portion having an engaging element complementary to said release element such that only when in a selected rotary position relative to the first portion the release element can be aligned with the complementary engaging element thereby allowing separation of the two portions to open the container, said engaging element of the second portion being engageable with the engaging element of the first portion to close the container in any rotary position of the first portion relative to the second portion except for said selected rotary position, wherein said engaging and release elements of the first portion and said engaging element of the second portion are located upon respective support members located inwardly of the side walls of the first and second portions so to be screened from the outside of the container by the side walls, the respective support members projecting towards one another from the portion of the container upon which they are located.