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ProvenanceDuncan C. Scott, Department of Indian Affairs, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Bertram Forsyth, England
BibliographyVincent, Gilbert et al. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2000, p.362.
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. 399.
Culture
Tsimshian, Nishga?, Gitksan?
Naxnok Mask
Date1870-1880
DimensionsOverall: 9 3/4 × 8 × 6 1/2 in. (24.8 × 20.3 × 16.5 cm)
Object numberT0178
Credit LineLoan from the Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust
Photograph by John Bigelow Taylor, NYC
Label TextNaxnok, or “the power beyond the human,” is the energy that drives the universe. It is personified in spirit beings that are represented by animals, birds, sea creatures, and people. Family and clan lineage transfers the names of these spirit beings to hose who inherit the right to wear them. Naxnok masks are used to tell stories or origin and creation.ProvenanceDuncan C. Scott, Department of Indian Affairs, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Bertram Forsyth, England
BibliographyVincent, Gilbert et al. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2000, p.362.
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. 399.
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