Museum Expedition 1941, Frank L. Babbott Fund

Anonymous gift

The whalebone object is a flat sword-shaped club. On top of handle is a carved thunderbird with two pierced holes. Due to an old break, the thunderbird's beak is missing. As found on many clubs, an incised, upside-down head is at the bottom. Each side of the club has a row of small round holes linked to each other by a simple vertical incised pattern. The front has five round holes; the back has three. The object has a rich patina indicating use and age. Regarding object above, see Steve Brown, "The Spirit Within," containing story told on the west coast of Vancouver Island by whaling nobility representatives (Nitin or Dit-i-Daht).

The walrus tusk is engraved with different scenes, each having its own groundline in space. The scenes include: men netting fish or seal and birds flying above; men hunting bear and deer using spears and bows & arrows; large whale with spume coming out of its blowhole along with several fins in the water nearby; a dog sled; two bears wrestling and a man lassoing a bird.

This is a hand adze composed of a carved wood handle, bear shin bone blade and commercial twine wrapped around both to bind together. The wood handle iconography has the top of a wolf's head with the upper torsos of a pair of dancers wearing wolf masks. These masks usually come in pairs (See 08.491.8905a,b). According to Culin collecting records the bone blade replaced an iron blade (2908:84). According to Bill Holm, Northwest Coast specialist, the twine is commercial and unabraded which indicates the adze has never been used in this form. The handle shows a wear pattern of the hand that used it and is softly worn.

Earplugs. A red-feathered disk is surrounded by white beads and attached to a carved piece of bone. Pendants of abalone are suspended from the red disk.

By exchange

This (steel?) knife blade is known as a beaver tail stabber, Hudson's Bay dag or hand dag, with the later appellation appearing in trade accounts. It is a flat, triangular, spear shape joined to the handle with two copper rivets. The blade has no commercial markings. The handle is bone that is etched along the sides possibly with a tally of sorts made by the owner. The shape of the handle is nicely rounded at the grip to fit the palm comfortably and the butt acts as a guard to protect the hand from the blade. There is a third rivet at the end of the bone handle.The name 'scapling" is probably inaccurate . This hide sheath does not fit this dag knife and was probably made to fit a curved, commercial knife. The top edge of the sheath is decorated with a pattern of small quills. Threes crosses decorate a field of white quillwork on the panel. The cross at center is built around a light yellow square at center with dark brown arms. The two crosses on the right and left are pale blue squares at center with dark brown arms. On the edges of the panels, a small strip of red cloth, probably ribbon, is tied to the sheath's loop and two smaller loops with orange and white quillwork are attached. A border of tin cones stuffed with red dyed cloth is suspended from the panel. The streamers have remnants of wrappings with orange quillwork and decorated with additional cones. White quills along the seam and at the top of the knife sheath are applied as overcast stitches.

Museum Collection Fund

By exchange