Throughout the masking area of the Northwest Coast, the dramatic effect of opening jaws and other moving parts on masks was recognized. Of all the tribes using masks, however, the Kwakwaka'wakw carried articulation to its highest development. This small thunderbird forehead mask uses two variations on the theme. The lower mandible is hinged to allow it to open and close, and the crest of wooden feathers between the ears can be spread like a fan or dropped back to lie flat on the head. Strings control movement of these parts. (Holm, Crooked Beak of Heaven, 1972)

Masks worn in the taming of the hamatsa vary widely in size. At just over one foot in length, this crooked beak mask is among the smaller masks. It may be an example of a type called heyhliwey, a small forehead mask worn by the hamatsa himself or his female attendant during his last, tame dance. However, because the jaw is hinged and controlled with a cord suggests that it was intended to be used in the humsumala or cannibal mask dance. The short snout, simple painting, and the form of the nostril are characteristic of hamatsa masks made around the turn of the century. (Holm, Crooked Beak of Heaven, 1972)

The painting on this feast spoon is expertly and elegantly done. The figure fits its somewhat difficult format without any apparent forcing or distortion of elements. Master artists of the Northwest Coast excelled in composition for awkward shapes or on complex, three-dimensional surfaces. This feast spoon is one of three in the collection of the Burke Museum. Lieutenant George Emmons, who collected this spoon, identified the creature on it as an eagle. (Holm, Spirit and Ancestor, 1987)

The paint is black, red, green, and white. The nail is copper.

The paint is green, red, and black.

The paint is blue and red.

Long, high-prowed canoes sliced the waves of the coast, driven by the paddles of northern warriors raiding the Salish for slaves, or carrying a chief, seeking a bride, and his retinue. When it was bought from its owner, Chief Jonathan Whonnock, this graceful and elaborately decorated canoe had just brought a party of Kwakwaka'wakw three hundred miles from northern Vancouver Island, to work in the hop fields of Puget Sound. On the Northwest Coast the canoe was a part of almost every human activity, from the deeds of fabled heroes and noble chiefs to the everyday business of fishing and traveling. The figure on the bow of this canoe represents an eagle with a salmon in each talon. (Holm, Spirit and Ancestor, 1987)

The paint is black and white.

The paint is white, green, black, and red.

The paint is black and white.