QR code #24
1. Every ring counts
Guests and leaders at potlatches wear a hat like this one. Just like the figure on the handle of the spoon next to it. After the ceremony, the potlatch host may get a woven ring to add on top of their hat. The more rings, the more potlatches the person has hosted.
Teresa Russ (1955-); Haida; Vancouver, Canada; 2020; yellow cedar bark
2. Spoon for ceremonies
The handles of horn spoons made by Haida people often have beautiful carvings on them. The carvings are usually different animals, one on top of the other, which can tell stories of a family’s history or sometimes supernatural events. At the bottom is a beaver and at the top is a man wearing a hat with rings. He is probably the person who sponsored a potlatch.
Haida; British Columbia, Canada; 1800-1900; mountain goat horn, abalone; WM-34806