This large, striking sculpture shows considerable age and an affinity with Heiltsuk or Haisla work from the fourth quarter of the 19th century. The sculpture and painting of the creature’s head is lively and refined, indicative of a practiced and skilled artist. With nothing similar with which to compare this, it’s hard to know whether it was originally a mask, or something like a canoe ornament made to fit around a bow piece, or perhaps some other sculptural figure of which this may have been a part. Bill Holm made an addition that was intended to give it context based on being a mask. For this he created a new lower jaw that was articulated. He reinforced the pieces he fitted onto the sides of the mouth with countersunk steel bolts. He also added the lower jaw and hinged joint that enabled it to open and close like a mask. This was a successful construction that gives life to the original image.

If this wasn’t a mask originally, what else might it have been? It may have been a canoe ornament or something similar, attached to a separate object as a sculptural enhancement. It is not likely to have been part of a totem pole, as the wood grain is in the wrong direction for that. It may have been part of some kind of sea creature figure, created for display at important occasions. Even without a specific history that we’re aware of, one can nevertheless envision the possibilities of how this refined sculpture once stood out, a small part of something larger.

Steven C. Brown

Bill Holm (1925-2020), Professor Emeritus of Art History at the University of Washington, Curator Emeritus of Northwest Coast Indian Art at the Burke Museum, and author of groundbreaking books on the subject, is recognized internationally as one of the most knowledgeable experts in the field of Northwest Coast Native art history. Holm was also an artist in his own right and in his quest to better understand traditional techniques, he carved examples of virtually every kind of object. He was commissioned to restore historical artworks on occasion and is known for his careful and thoughtful work in this area.