Bowl

Date1800-1850

DimensionsOverall: 5 1/2 × 5 1/4 × 8 1/2 in. (14 × 13.3 × 21.6 cm)

Object numberT0148

Credit LineLoan from the Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust

Photograph by John Bigelow Taylor, NYC

Label TextThe chip-carved zigzag lines on this sheep horn bowl reflect the ancient geometric design style of southern Northwest Coast cultures near the Lower Columbia River. The chip carving also frames several stylized human-like faces that may represent guardian spirits related to annual root-gathering rituals. The faces are geometric, with straight lines defining the brow and nose, a pointed oval representing the mouth, and half-circles for the eyes.
Exhibition History"Art of the American Indian: The Thaw Collection," The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, March 2, 2010 - May 30, 2010; Minneapolis Museum of Art, Minneapolis, MN, October 24, 2010 - January 9, 2011; Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX, April 24, 2011 - September 23, 2011; Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, IN, December 4, 2011 - February 12, 2012.
ProvenanceMorning Star Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
BibliographyVincent, Gilbert T. Masterpieces of American Indian Art. New York: Harry Abrams, 1995, p.66.

Vincent, Gilbert et al. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2000, p.298.

Jonaitis, Aldona. Art of the Northwest Coast. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 2006, pg. 62.

Fognell, Eva, ed. Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, NY: Fenimore Art Museum, 2010, p. 138.

Fognell, Eva and Alexander Brier Marr, eds. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection at the Fenimore Art Museum, 2nd ed. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2016, p. 318.

On View

On view