Top view of a ladle. The spoon’s bowl is round, extending into a narrower tan stem decorated with symmetric geometric motifs connecting to a pointed and thin black handle.
Ladle’s side view, showing that it forms a wave-like shape. The tip of the spoon’s bowl is pointing upwards, with the neck sloping upwards, while the thin black handle points downwards.
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Unknown Maker, Haida

Ladle

Maker

Unknown Maker, Haida

Culture

Haida, Native North American

Title

Ladle

Year

before 1944

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

horn, copper

Dimensions

37.5 cm (14 3/4 inches) (length)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Museum Works of Art Fund

Object Number

44.333

Type

Exhibition History

Being and Believing in the Natural World
Perspectives from the Ancient Mediterranean, Asia, and Indigenous North America
Oct 22, 2022 – Jun 04, 2023

Label copy

Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast eat mountain goats, weave goat wool, and carve goat horns into ladles used for practical and ceremonial uses. This ladle’s handle depicts Raven, a powerful trickster figure in Northwest Coast traditions.

While we don’t know the name of this Yurok cap’s maker, we can appreciate their ecological and traditional knowledge and creative skill in gathering, dyeing, and weaving these natural materials.

We can also imagine the proud girl who would have worn the cap in a ceremony.

—SB | Cecilia Ammon, Mellon Curatorial Intern in Native American Art

Image use

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Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Haida
Ladle, before 1944
Mountain goat horn and copper
37.5 cm (14 3/4 inches) (length)
Museum Works of Art Fund 44.333

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