Hook

Item number E 1902.249 from the MAA: University of Cambridge.

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Description

A large halibut hook made from two pieces of wood lashed together with split spruce root. An iron barb is lashed into place also with split spruce root. The lower arm is carved in the form of a bird, possibly a raven, with a hollowed out head andlegs. The remains of the leader line can be seen in a hole in the centre of the bird' s body.; Good

Context

The majority of carved halibut hooks of this type are Tlingit, this provenance is also cited by J.C.H.King 121992, rather than the catalogue card provenance of Nootka Sound (G.Crowther). The original European tribal names and, where possible, current tribal names have both been given in separate GLT fields.; Large halibut hooks were used with a weighted line, and often a float to keep the hook in the correct position. The hook would be baited with squid on the barb, which the halibut would take completely into its mouth, the slight notches below the barb were made by the halibut as it struggled. The hooks are thought to have been made by the fisherman who used them because each hook is scaled to the body size of the fisherman to ensure only halibut of a manageable size will be caught. The scaling of hook to body size is achieved through the spread of the hook' s arms being equal to the man' s fist, and that his thumb can pass between the arm and the point of the barb. The crest design on the lower arm represents ownership of the resource area and supernatural help from the creature represented.; Exhibited: Old Anthropological displays, CUMAA, case 35, until 14081986.