Necklace of cowrie shells with a gourd pendant. A double line of cowrie shells makes up the majority of the chain, strung on plastic fishing line. At the bottom are three pairs of shells interspersed with three strands of plastic beads in black red and white. A small brown gourd hangs below this, covered in a loosely woven covering of raffia, with a raffia tassel hanging below. The gourd is embellished with three evenly spaced decorations of a cowrie shell surrounded by a circle of beads.

Staff made of thick, stiff strands of dried grass, wrapped with raffia in an open weave to make up the handle. From the bottom protrudes a tuft of raffia, wrapped with a band of woven white fabric and grey plastic twine. Two circular patches of raffia are attached close to the base, topped with cowrie shells arranged in a flower motif. The top of the staff is covered in unbleached cotton, edged with two kinds of braided synthetic banding. Attached to the cotton are three small gourd rattles, also wrapped in open raffia weaving, each with a single cowrie shell and plastic bead decoration. Three lines of cowrie shells are glued to the cotton between the gourds.

Costume skirt made of long, plain strips of raffia hanging from a thin cotton waistband.

Filá headdress. Gourd headpiece, with hanging raffia cover. The half gourd is decorated with lace around its rim and across to the top centre where it wraps around a protruding lip. On the body between the strips of lace are woven circles of raffia beneath flower shaped arrangements of cowrie shells and plastic beads. Out the top protrusion emerges a stiff tuft of raffia held together by a wrap of grey plastic twine. From the lower rim of the gourd hang thick, metre long strands of raffia, entirely encircling the headdress so that the fringe hangs down evenly over the wearer’s front and back.

Alfred W. Jenkins Fund

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

In the work of Yurok artist Rick Bartow, human and animal images meld together, suggesting the interconnectedness of nature. In this cedar triptych, a crow and hawk mask human figures. For Bartow, these "transformational images" directly reference the myths he encountered while studying Native American carving techniques and symbolize the natural order and the power of change and redemption.