124-A1-5 | UNI Museum @ Rod Library

Displaying 1 - 5 of 5

	Catalog #	Name	Description
1	1989.60.10	Hook, Halibut	Object is made of wood, natural fiber rope and string, and metals. It is carved with a seal decoration. It is formed in a "V" shape, with an inward protruding metal spike. Much of the artifact is held together by natural fiber string. Both string and metal nails are used to hold both sides of the wooden "V" together. The piece has a knotted rope loop attached through a hole through its side.
2	1991.47.2	Mask	Mask of a face called the "Bad Shaman" from King Island. Carved of driftwood and painted with a wash of hematite and water. Mask has puffed-out cheeks and large black nostrils painted with India ink. It has a large mouth with full lips. The lower lip protrudes while the counterpart, the "Good Shaman" has a protruding upper lip. The legend behind the mask originated from a shaman who saw the spirits in the clouds and created a ritual dance to accommodate it. The legend states that the spirits in the clouds are two shamans fighting in a word battle to see who had the most power. The words became so violent that the evil shaman becomes angry and kills the brother. He feels terrible for killing the Good Shaman and so he sings a song to bring him back to life. The masks are only to be worn by shamans and are only produced on King's Island and St. Lawrence Island. This mask along with its pair are very popular not only with collectors, but with the carvers as well.The original format of the mask has been kept to its traditional style, only varying in slight differences from the authors own style. This pair was created by Tony Pushruk in 1964. The mask has a narrow leather strap for hanging.
3	1991.47.3	Mask, Ritual	Mask of a face called the "Good Shaman" from King Island. Carved of driftwood and painted with a wash of hematite and water. Mask has puffed-out cheeks and large black nostrils painted with India ink. It has a large mouth with full lips. The upper lip protrudes signifying the "Good Shaman" while its counterpart has a protruding lower lip. The legend behind the mask originated from a shaman who saw the spirits in the clouds and created a ritual dance to accommodate it. The legend states that the spirits in the clouds are two shamans fighting in a word battle to see who had the most power. The words became so violent that the evil shaman becomes angry and kills the brother. He feels terrible for killing the other and so he sings a song to bring him back to life. The masks are only to be worn by shamans and are only produced on King's Island and St. Lawrence Island. This mask along with its pair are very popular not only with collectors, but with the carvers as well.The original format of the mask has been kept to its traditional style, only varying in slight differences from the authors own style. This pair was created by Tony Pushruk in 1964. The Good Shaman mask has a narrow leather strap for hanging.
4	1991.47.5	Mask	Musk Ox mask from Nunivak Island. Center of mask is the black head of an ox with horns of bone. There are white and rust features on the ox and he holds a piece of wood in his mouth. Two wooden circles surround the head with eight feathers attached. Atop each of the feathers is a wooden fish or a wooden hoof. This mask's intended purpose was for decoration, but created in the style and tradition of Yup'ik mask making. Traditionally, Yup'ik masks were created by shamans, or angalkut, to be worn during dances to bring prosperity to the tribe.The animal represented by the masks were intended to bring a surplus of that particular animal.
5	1991.47.6	Mask	Raven mask from King Island. Black mask depicts a raven with long beak and tongue. Includes a strap for hanging. Ravens are often symbols of trickery or heroism. Black wooden mask. Shaped like a raven’s face/head. Black paint. White paint for eyes and eyebrows. Red/orange paint for the inside of the beak. Face of the mask is oval in shape. Made by Tony Pushruk in 1955. Sent to UNI from Port Townsend, WA. Animals were seen by the Inuit people to be equals. According to their beliefs, when hunting, animals gave themselves to humans only if they followed certain taboos. There was an annual celebration called Kelek, which opened passages between the human-world and the animal-world. Shamans would lead dances and songs to convince spirits of animals in the animal-world to cross over to the human-world, a way of achieving an abundance of fish or game. They would wear wooden, carved masks during this ceremony. Other ceremonies also included masks, but Kelek seems to be the most important one. Some masks did not have special meaning, and were mostly worn for fun by children during the festivals. These masks were almost always depictions of birds or fish.