LEDGER BOOK CALLS THIS A WOOD CARVED BOOT, AND INDEED IT IS A BOOT-SHAPED BOX? WITH LID. HOWEVER, BOOT WAS MISTRANSCRIBED AS BOAT ON CATALOGUE CARD. - F. PICKERING 8-4-1999

LEDGER, CATALOG CARD AND SI ARCHIVE DISTRIBUTION DOCUMENTS SAY SENT TO THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YORK. 1905.

FROM CARD: "INVENTORIED 1976."Provenience uncertain. Anthropology catalogue ledger book identifies source of these boots as "Chilcot Indians." On the basis of that, it seems, culture in catalogue database has been listed as Tlingit, Chilkat? Note that an unknown person at an unknown time listed culture as Eskimo? on catalogue card.

Listed on page 44 in "The Exhibits of the Smithsonian Institution at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco, California, 1915", in section "Arts of the Northwest Coast Tribes".

From card: "Design: "Hoonyeh" the raven, its body hollowed to form the body of the rattle. On its breast is the conventional head of "Skamson" the sparrow hawk, on its back the prostrate form of "Ka-ka-tete" the whistling demon. The tail of the raven turns up forming the head of a king fisher, its beak plucking out the tongue of the demon. Carved by Ellsworth [a.k.a. Ellswarsh] a Skiddegate carver."Per the entry on E89186 in the website http://alaska.si.edu/, Ellsworth or Ellswarsh may refer to Daniel Eldjiwus [a.k.a. Daniel Elljuuwas], a chief and builder of the House of Contentment at Skidegate.

AS OF 2000, CAT. #74432 CONSISTS OF ONE COLUMN OF 4 CYLINDRICAL WOVEN SPRUCE-ROOT? RINGS, SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS "POTLATCH RINGS," USUALLY USED ON TOPS OF HATS. -F. PICKERING 6-14-2000