Made to be held in each hand, the rattles represent the upraised paws of the grizzly, the fearsome crest animal of the Nanyaayi. The claws curving over the face from the naturalistically rendered foot on the back of the rattle show that the intent was to represent the bear's foot with a human face on the pad. Human faces often appear on the palms of hands and soles of feet of humans and animals in northern Northwest Coast art. (Holm, Spirit and Ancestor, 1987)