Muzzle Item Number: Edz1099 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
Description
Cow muzzle. Thimble-shaped, open weave basket-like object; thin grey cord tied to two metal loops on opposite sides of the rim.
History Of Use
Muzzles like this were used to prevent a cow from grazing in the grass beside the fields as it was working. Such muzzles were in common use, being employed primarily by women but occasionally by men. Until the 1960s Hakka women had primary responsibility for subsistence farming, as the men often worked elsewhere, or at occupations such as fishing. In the remote areas of Saikung, by the mid-twentieth century younger men often emigrated to urban areas of Hong Kong or overseas, to try to make a living. In such cases any women left behind had to continue subsistence agriculture as well as depending on hoped-for remittances. Saikung was a poor area in which people depended on the gathering of marine resources as well as farming. As the fields were small, they used cows rather than water buffalo to pull the ploughs and harrows. After the mid-twentieth century the New Territories of Hong Kong began to undergo fundamental changes. The people who had been settled there before 1898, when the British colonizers claimed the area, began to give up rice agriculture and coastal fishing, turning instead to wage labour and increased employment overseas. By the end of the century, educational opportunities leading to the possibility of white-collar work also increased, together with western influences.
Cultural Context
daily use
Narrative
Hakka people are one of the two original land-dwelling groups that settled the area that became the New Territories of Hong Kong. Their spoken language, and some customs, differed from those of the other original group, the Cantonese or Punti. The Cantonese arrived first and settled on the best rice-growing lands, while the Hakka began to arrive after the late 17th century and settled the more hilly lands. Mrs. Ng donated this muzzle to the Museum of Anthropology because she was elderly and was no longer able to carry out rice agriculture, especially after her most recent crop had been burned in a house fire. The muzzle had been woven for her by her brother. In 1980, the remote villages of Sai Kung District were inhabited primarily by elderly people who were unable or unwilling to emigrate with their family members and depended on small-scale farming and hoped-for remittances..
Item History
- Made in Sai Kung, Hong Kong, China
- Collected by Elizabeth L. Johnson during 1979
- Owned by Elizabeth L. Johnson before March 17, 1980
- Received from Elizabeth L. Johnson (Seller) and Museum of Anthropology Shop Volunteers (Funding source) on March 17, 1980
What
- Name
- Muzzle
- Identification Number
- Edz1099
- Type of Item
- muzzle
- Material
- bamboo grass, nylon fibre ? and metal
- Manufacturing Technique
- cut, stripped, smoothed and woven
- Overall
- height 12.5 cm, diameter 16.5 cm
Who
- Culture
- Chinese: Hakka
- Field Collector
- Elizabeth L. Johnson
- Previous Owner
- Elizabeth L. Johnson
- Received from
- Elizabeth L. Johnson (Seller) and Museum of Anthropology Shop Volunteers (Funding source)
Where
- Holding Institution
- MOA: University of British Columbia
- Made in
- Sai Kung, Hong Kong, China
When
- Collection Date
- during 1979
- Ownership Date
- before March 17, 1980
- Acquisition Date
- on March 17, 1980
Other
- Item Classes
- basketry
- Condition
- good
- Accession Number
- 0610/0069