Chest Item Number: 1522/1 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
Description
Carved cedar chest with hinged lid, dove-tailed corners. Lid has thunderbird design and border of geometric designs. Front of box, on either side of a bear(?) crest are carved totem figures. Also, attached at each front corner are identical totem poles with a thunderbird and bear. Otter is carved on the side panels. Plain back.
Narrative
Chest was a wedding gift to Ruth Evelyn Thompson (nee Dovey) and George Alexander Thompson (Alert Bay, 1934), carved by a Kwakwaka'wakw friend. The friend is presumed to be Arthur Shaughnessy based the strong similarity of this chest to two in the RBCM collection which are both solidly attributed to Shaughnessy.
Item History
- Made by Arthur Shaughnessy (Maker) in 'Yalis (Alert Bay), British Columbia, Canada during 1934
- Owned by George Thompson
- Owned by Peter Thompson before May 11, 1992
- Received from Peter Thompson (Donor) on May 11, 1992
What
- Name
- Chest
- Identification Number
- 1522/1
- Type of Item
- chest
- Material
- cedar wood
- Overall
- height 42.6 cm, width 124.0 cm, depth 52.0 cm
Who
- Culture
- Kwakwaka'wakw
- Creator
- Arthur Shaughnessy (Maker)
- Previous Owner
- George Thompson and Peter Thompson
- Received from
- Peter Thompson (Donor)
Where
- Holding Institution
- MOA: University of British Columbia
- Made in
- 'Yalis (Alert Bay), British Columbia, Canada
When
- Creation Date
- during 1934
- Ownership Date
- before May 11, 1992
- Acquisition Date
- on May 11, 1992
Other
- Condition
- good
- Accession Number
- 1522/0001