Transformation Mask of the Kwakwaka’wakw people

Transformation Mask of the Kwakwaka’wakw people

British Columbia
Indigenous peoples
Mask
Tsaxis
Vancouver Island
Kwawitl
Ethnology
19th century

The object is a Transformation Mask from the Kwakwaka’wakw people. These masks were worn by dancers during ceremonies, they pull strings to open and move the mask, animating it. The mask can be opened and closed to reveal a mythical being or an animal. In 1881, Canada established the Kwawkewlth Indian Agency at Fort Rupert, the same year that the first wave of ethnology collecting began with the arrival of J. A. Jacobsen. These masks are representative of the belief among the Kwakwaka’wakw that their deceased ancestors roamed the world, transforming themselves in the process, which may entail the removal of their animal skins or masks to reveal their human selves within.

Berlin Museum of Ethnology, Collected at Tsaxis

First Nations: Land Rights and Environmentalism in British Columbia

http://www.firstnations.de/fisheries/kwakwakawakw-kwakiutl.htm

1881

David Cook

Berlin Museum of Ethnology

http://www.smb.museum/en/museums-institutions/ethnologisches-museum/home.html

N/A

Object - Mask

19th century British Columbia