Box, Bentwood
U'mista Cultural Centre
Tous droits réservés.
| Nom de l'objet : | Box, Bentwood |
| Catégorie de l'objet : | 2: Building Furnishings |
| Matériaux : | Wood, Cedar Abalone Paint Metal |
| Technique de fabrication : | carved steamed bent painted dowelled |
| Numéro de catalogue : | UCC-95.03.009 |
| Numéro d'accession : | 1995/03 |
| Municipalité d'origine : | Canada |
| Culture : | Kwakwaka'wakw |
| Description : | Treasure boxes are of great importance to the Kwakwaka'wakw and are used for storing a family's most vauable treasures. They are often finely carved and beautifully painted with family crests. Many myths tell stories of treawsure boxes being acquird from supernatural sources. This treasure box was owned by Sam Charlie and transferred from Cape Mudge to Alert Bay in 1995 at the request of his granddaughter Mary Beans. It is a carved and painted bentwood storage box with 8 pieces of abalone inlay, on the front whale design Only one half of the back is carved and painted. In this kind of box, ceremonial objects and other objects important to a dance or certain type of potlatch ceremony are secured. (pg. 85, The Power of Giving. 2011) Considered as a valuable possession, this kind of chest is used to store masks and other ritual paraphenalia such as rattles, whistles during non-ceremonial periods.l It also contains secular objects that are symbols of wealth and prestige like Coppers. Carved and painted with family crests, these "boxes of treasures" are passed down from generation to generation as the symbol of the power of the ancestor. Numerous Kwagu'l myths tell how these boxes of treasures came to the ancestor of the group. The privilege of owning such a chest with its contents, i.e., masks (and the dances that went with them) was in many cases transferred to the bride's husband during the marriage ceremony. Traditionally this type of chest g'awa?e was build from red cedar. The four sides were made from a single board which was steamed, kerfed and bent - the corners having been previously grooved - . The decorated chest housed in the Kwagiulth Museum was made in a "western style" using four alder boards nailed together. The sides are of alder (oxwm s), the bottom and the lid of red cedar (d namas). A moulding is nailed around the bottom edge and the lid. The lid and the unfinished back part are painted green. The lid moulding is painted yellow and the base moulding red. The three completed sides are carved in low relief and painted black, yellow, red, white and dark green. The formline (Holm, 1965) which defines the crest is painted black. The ovoids and U shapes are green and the tertiary space which in many cases is left unpainted among the Northern tribes is decorated in yellow. Pieces of inlaid abalone shells adorn the inner ovoids of the eyes and the ears of the animal represented, which could be a bear, recognizable by its large mouth and its small ears. (pg. 184, Mauze manuscript, c.1998) Carved and painted bentwood storage box with eight pieces of abalone inlay on the front. The front design has a whale and the sides feature abstract figures and elements of design. The box is kerfed with a locking mechanism which is possibly taken from a European trunk. This lock is now broken. The back of the box only has half of the design carved and is painted dark green. Green, black, yellow, white, red. |
| Hauteur : | 54.6000000000 |
| Longueur : | 81.3000000000 |
| Largeur : | 47.7000000000 |
| Profondeur : | 0.0000000000 |
| Diamètre extérieur : | 0.0000000000 |
| Unité de mesure linéaire : | centimetres |
| Établissement : |
U'mista Cultural Centre
 Facebook-U'mista Cultural Centre
|
| Ville de l'établissement : | Alert Bay |
| Province de l'établissement : | British Columbia |
Coordonnées de cette page web
-
Pour proposer des corrections ou des mises à jour sur cette page, veuillez contacter directement le Réseau canadien d’information sur le patrimoine (RCIP).