Lot 124
Unidentified Artist
Lot 124 Details
Unidentified Artist, Nuu-chah-nulth
DIVING BIRD RATTLE, CIRCA 1880
wood, brass, pebbles, paint
a historic label affixed to the underside of the rattle reads: "H Stadthagen The Indian Trader 79 Johnson St. Victoria BC"; accompanied by steel display stand
subject 3.75 x 5.5 x 9.5 in — 9.5 x 14 x 24.1 cm
Estimate $3,500-$4,500
Additional Images
Provenance:
Henry Stadthagen, Victoria, BC;
Private Collection, Vancouver, BC;
Private Collection, Toronto, ON
Note:
The form of this rattle is likely intended to evoke a petrel or other diving bird. Throughout the mythology of the peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, diving birds feature prominently as intermediary creatures, communicating between human travellers on water and the water's deep-sea occupants. Among the whale-hunting Nuu-chah-nulth, diving bird figuration is particularly common.
This rattle features the unusual inclusion of an ovular panel of salvaged brass, contoured to form the abdomen of the bird. The brass panel amplifies the sound of the colliding pebbles inside the rattle when it is shaken.
Affixed to the underside of the rattle is a historic label from the Victoria, British Columbia curio shop of Henry Stadthagen. Stadthagen purchased objects directly from Nuu-chah-nulth craftspeople, as well as from owners of objects which may already have been old at the time of their acquisition by Stadthagen. Today, many prominent public and private collections of Northwest Coast art have objects which passed through Stadthagen's well known shop.
Related Works:
Seahawk Auctions, British Columbia, 21 Nov 2010, lot 108 (hammer price: 7,000 USD)
Canadian Museum of History, cat. No.VII-F-1051
National Museum of the American Indian, cat. No.11/3459