The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

Tribes such as the Yurok of northwestern Califonia and the Klamath of southern Oregon carried on a lively tradition of carving items from both elk antlers and wood. Elk antlers were cut in sections to be fashioned into small containers for dentalia, a marine shell that was used as money by the Yurok and other tribes of northwestern California.

Several tribes living along the middle Columbia River, including the Wasco, made bowls and other objects from mountain sheep horns. Pieces of horn were steamed until soft, spread open, and then formed into a shape with raised ends and flaring sides. The bowls are decorated with a combination of carved geometric shapes, zigzag lines, and round human faces.

Symbolizing great concentrations of wealth and prestige, coppers, or tlakwa, are publicly displayed on ceremonial occasions. Among the Kwakwaka’wakw, these copper plaques are cut or broken and the pieces are distributed to rivals as a means of intimidation through a show of wealth. Visual evidence indicates that this copper had been broken into multiple sections, then pieced back together with rivets along the ridge. The painted killer whale crest design reflects a more recent addition, perhaps applied over an earlier rendering. Coppers are esteemed items, and their ceremonial transfer remains part of dowry negotiations for the Kwakawa’wakw.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection. Collected: Elizabeth Cole Butler