Description

Wooden dagger with grip wrapped in hide rope and carved with the head of a ?dogfish. [CAK 23/06/2009]

Longer Description

Wooden dagger with grip wrapped in hide rope and carved with the head of a ?dogfish. The dagger was likely carved from a single piece of wood, either red or yellow cedar. The blade is short, rounded at its tip, widens and then squares. It is carved in relief on one side in the image of a ?dogfish: the tip may be viewed as a fin, while the down-turned mouth is reminiscent of dogfish designs more generally. The handle is wrapped in hide rope. The pommel is wide and carved in relief on one side with wide groves. The very end of the pommel has been squared. The reverse of the object is smoothly carved, with a very slight concave curvature on the blade. The object is coloured in a grey-black metallic pigment. [CAK 23/06/2009]

Research Notes

The following information comes from Haida delegates who worked with the museum's collection in September 2009 as part of the project “Haida Material Culture in British Museums: Generating New Forms of Knowledge”:
This dagger was viewed alongside tools and domestic items on Monday Sept 14, 2009. Nika Collison and Christian White identified this as a wooden model of a dagger. Christian further identified the wood as either red or yellow cedar. Discussion of Haida daggers more generally can be viewed on Tape 9, time 5:27, which can be found in the Haida Project Related Documents File. [CAK 12/04/2010]

Primary Documentation

Accession book entry (for 1891.49.43 and .44): 'From Rev. Ch. Harrison, 80 Halton Rd, Canonbury Sq. N. Collection of Haida objects collected by him.... - [1 of] 2 Wooden daggers.

No additional information on catalogue cards. [JC 4 9 1996]

Pitt Rivers Museum label - N. AMERICA, CANADA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, QUEEN CHARLOTTE IDS. WOODEN MODEL DAGGER. PURCH: REV. C. HARRISON 1891.49.43 [LM 14/05/2007]

Written on object - Model dagger. Haida Harrison coll. 1891 (Purchased) [NM 13 11 1996]

Related Documents File - A discussion of daggers can be viewed on Tape 9, time 5:27 within the Haida Project Related Documents File. The Haida Project Related Documents File contains video of research sessions and interviews with Haida delegates from September 2009 as part of the project ‘Haida Material Culture in British Museums: Generating New Forms of Knowledge'. It also includes post-visit communications that discuss object provenance. For extensive photographic, video, and textual records documenting the Haida research visit as a whole, including but not limited to preparations of objects for handling, travel logistics, British Museum participation, transcribed notes from research sessions and associated public events held at PRM, see the Haida Project Digital Archive, stored with the Accessions Registers. Original hand-written notes taken during research sessions have been accessioned into the Manuscripts collection, in addition to select other materials. [CAK 02/06/2010]