Provenience note: Anthropology catalogue ledger book lists a locality of Alaska for E67931 - 68019. Catalogue cards list a locality of Sitka. Alaska. It is unclear which is correct, though it is probable that the collection was purchased in Sitka.

From card: "Woven grass."Original label attached to artifact says "Lillie [presumably the maker or original owner?], Jackson, Alaska." Jackson is an alternate name for Howkan, Alaska, which is a Haida town.

REPLACEMENT CARD: INFORMATION COPIED FROM LEDGER,AUGUST,1983.No catalog card found in card file

This object is on loan to the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center, from 2010 through 2027. Source of the information below: Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center Alaska Native Collections: Sharing Knowledge website, by Aron Crowell, entry on this artifact http://alaska.si.edu/record.asp?id=661, retrieved 3-31-2012: Cradle. The front of this fringed and beaded cradle is made of tanned hide and the back is covered with spotted deer fur. The small pouch that hangs from the front would have contained the child's umbilical cord, saved from birth, as well as amulets such as miniature paddles, arrowheads, or earrings. When children were older their mothers hung these amulet pouches around their necks for continuing spiritual protection.

FROM CARD: "SHELL, A HOOP, THE JOINT IS SCARFED AND LASHED. ONE HEAD STRETCHED OVER HOOP AND HAILED TO BACK EDGE OF HOOP. FOUR STRIPS OF HIDE FORM THE HEAD; ARE BROUGHT TOGETHER AND TIED IN THE MIDDLE, FORMING A CROSS FOR A HANDLE." FROM OLD 19TH OR EARLY 20TH CENTURY EXHIBIT LABEL WITH CARD: "HAND DRUM OF THE TLINKITS, KOLUSCHAN FAMILY. SHELL, A HOOP OF WOOD; HEAD, OF SKIN, SOAKED, STRETCHED ACROSS THE HOOP AND NAILED TO THE BACK EDGE, THE HANDLE BEING FORMED OF THONGS TIED TOGETHER AT THE BACK. DIAMETER, 14 1/2 INCHES. SITKA, ALASKA. 20,731. COLLECTED, 1875, BY JAMES G. SWAN."

Provenience note: Anthropology catalogue ledger book lists a locality of Alaska for E67931 - 68019. Catalogue cards list a locality of Sitka. Alaska. It is unclear which is correct, though it is probable that the collection was purchased in Sitka.

FROM CARD: "ILLUS. IN USNM AR 1888; PL. 27, FIG. 127A,B; P. 286. 4/18/67:LOANED TO VANCOUVER ART GALL. 12/13/67:RETURNED BY VANCOUVER. LOAN: CROSSROADS SEP 22 1988. ILLUS.: CROSSROADS OF CONTINENTS CATALOGUE; FIG.388, P.282. LOAN RETURNED: JAN 21 1993." Crossroads of Continents catalogue identifies: Spear Thrower, Tlingit. "The very few Tlingit spear throwers, or throwing boards, that survive are all carved with figures that resemble those on shaman's rattles and amulets. Although completely functional, they are poorly shaped for efficient use ... compared to Pacific Eskimo throwing boards .... It is possible that they were all shamans' instruments, weapons to be used in war with the spirits. Whichever is the case, they are often beautifully carved. A long-beaked, crested bird (a kingfisher or meganser) bites an asymmetrically rendered sea creature on the shaft of this board. The legs, hands, and face of a man, with closed eyes, emerge from recesses in the grip. Although collected in the late 19th century, its early style, heavy wear and patination indicate a much earlier origin."Florence Sheakley, elder, made the following comments during the Tlingit Recovering Voices Community Research Visit, March 13-March 24, 2017. The design on this object is a Spirit Face.