Tool Box

Object Details

Collector

Edward W. Nelson

Donor Name

Edward W. Nelson

FROM CARD: "TRINKET BOX WOLF HEAD. ILLUS. IN BAE 18TH AR, PT. 1; PL. XLII-11; P. 102. 1/83 SITES INUA LOAN. WOOD LID AND BOX-BOX WITH WOOD PEGS; ONE EYE MISSING; IVORY NOSTRILS; WOOD TEETH-ALSO ANIMAL (WHAT KIND?) TEETH; BLACK, RED MYTH FIG. INT. LID. LOAN: CROSSROADS SEP 22 1988. ILLUS.: CROSSROADS OF CONTINENTS CATALOGUE; FIG. 445, P. 308. LOAN RETURNED: JAN 21 1993." Crossroads of Continents catalogue caption describes the designs painted on the inner side of the box lid in black and red: "This lid from a box representing a seal monster features hunting art and defecating caribou pursued by mythic Thunderbirds, which hold caribou, whales, and men in kayaks in their talons. A hatted European and a pregnant woman are shown in red."

Illustrated in Fitzhugh, William W., Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell. 2009. Gifts from the Ancient Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of Bering Strait. Yale University Press, New Haven and London, CT. Fig. 21, p 180. Identified there as a Yup'ik iseal-shaped tool box, wood and paint, total l. 41 cm. "Yup'ik men's tool boxes were frequently illustrated with hunting art and other subjects of special concern, including the giant thunderbird, which carried off animals as well as men in their kayaks. This is depicted in the center of the lid."

Record Last Modified

7 Mar 2017

Specimen Count

2

Culture

Eskimo, Yup'ik

Accession Date

1879

Accession Number

008133

USNM Number

E36246-0

Object Type

Box

Place

Pastolik, Yukon River, Mouth, Alaska, United States, North America

See more items in

Anthropology

NMNH - Anthropology Dept.

Topic

Ethnology

Record ID

nmnhanthropology_8409346

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/3c46ed6a9-bfe3-4459-bf8c-31ca703da690