Spoon
CultureHaida or Tsimshian, British Columbia, Canada
Dateca. 1840-1860
MediumMountain goat horn, cow horn, and metal pin
DimensionsOverall: 13 7/8 × 3 1/8 inches (35.24 × 7.95 cm)
Credit LineFrom the Estelle and Morton Sosland Collection
Object number2009.41.16
On View
On viewGallery Location
- 206
Collections
DescriptionCarved horn in 'S-shape;' bowl incised with design on bottom; tapering handle carved in a progression of stylized creatures.Gallery LabelSpoons of this type were used on formal occasions. Embellished with images depicting clan crests and family myths, the minute, precisely carved figures are arranged just as they were on monumental totem poles. Here, a human figure-a woman, identified by her flowing hair and the labret in her lower lip-sits atop an eagle or thunderbird; above her are what appear to be four creatures, perhaps baby birds; two more creatures, possibly a bird and a small mammal are poised above them. The handle of this two-piece spoon is made from the curved, tapering horn of a mountain goat, while the flaring bowl was made from that of a cow. The relief carving covering the bottom is a rare feature.
Torrence, Gaylord, ed. Continuum: North American Native Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Kansas City: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
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