Featured Haida or Tlingit silver spoon...

Discussion in 'Tribal Art' started by DragonflyWink, Oct 4, 2019.

  1. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member

    Recently acquired this cast sterling beaver effigy spoon (bit over 5" long), am sure it's a modern piece, and am hoping to identify the maker - took the best shot I could of the only marks, initials seen in the third pic. Perhaps I'm not seeing them correctly, so will leave it for other interpretation - sent an email to a Haida artisan with the initials I see, who is producing jewelry of similar quality, but haven't had any response - open to any opinions or suggestions...


    haidaspoonbeaver-1a.jpg

    haidaspoonbeaver-2a.jpg

    942019125556.jpg

    haidaspoonbeaver-4a.jpg

    haidaspoonbeaver-5a.jpg

    haidaspoonbeaver-6a.jpg


    ~Cheryl
     
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  2. scoutshouse

    scoutshouse Well-Known Member

    Wow - really nice, Cheryl

    And your photos do it justice!
     
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  3. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member

    Thanks, it is a really nice spoon - but other than the marks pic, the photos are actually the seller's, though I cropped and edited them for a bit more clarity.

    ~Cheryl
     
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  4. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Gorgeous, Cheryl, love it!
    I can see a beaver and a face with a chief's hat. @komokwa and @all_fakes can tell you more, and probably know maker JS as well.
     
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  5. all_fakes

    all_fakes Well-Known Member

    I don't recognize it; as said, cast, depicting a beaver with chew-stick; BOMA (Panabo Sales) does similar items, but this is not one of theirs.
     
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  6. Hollyblue

    Hollyblue Well-Known Member

    Posted a couple of hours ago and is already on Google images.
     
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  7. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    are we sure this bad boy is sterling....and not pewter....or..?
    I can't say who the artist is either....

    It sure looks like a Haida beaver..... but the design structure is just that little bit off for me to state with certainty that is native made...
     
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  8. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    ya , that was quick,...and it;s been there for over an hour...
     
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  9. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member

    I think it's quite nice too, AJ, and those are the same initials I read, perhaps I'll hear back from the artisan I found - his cast silver jewelry pieces and some other items bear a strong resemblance, but I didn't find any with his initials, and when he does sign, appears to be either first initial and last name, or full name, in script. Regardless, a nice addition to my collection...



    I had some question as to the material from just seeing the pics, but had little doubt once it arrived, just to be sure though, took it to my jeweler - acid-testing came up as sterling, he was bothered by the lack of a fineness mark (which didn't really concern me), and since it was small enough to fit in his specific gravity tank, he double-checked and it tested as sterling again. Also showed my little home scale is fairly accurate - the dry weight was 30.48 grams, and my scale kept shifting from 30 to 31, finally settling on 30 grams, close enough for my use...

    ~Cheryl
     
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  10. Hollyblue

    Hollyblue Well-Known Member

    If it was made in the U.S. there is no requirement that metal be marked for content.
     
  11. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member


    Yup, am well aware of that, and if I recall corrrectly, it's the same in Canada - if a piece is marked for quality, must bear a registered trademark. My jeweler is also aware there are unmarked precious metals, accurately gauging the content of unmarked high-karat gold, foreign coins, ingots, etc. brought to him for scrap is the main reason for his specific gravity setup - he also sees little NA silver, and just wanted to be sure before assuring me it was indeed sterling...

    ~Cheryl
     
  12. Jivvy

    Jivvy the research is my favorite

    I think "IS" is a possibility for the mark.

    Know nothing on the topic though. :bucktooth:
     
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  13. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Could be. The bit that makes it look like a J could be a small dent.
     
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  14. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    Isreal Shotridge does cast work......but that would make it Tlingit.....& fer now that's all I got !
     
  15. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member


    Thanks, Komo - not really seeing similarity in his work, though...

    ~Cheryl
     
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  16. Kathy Anderson

    Kathy Anderson Well-Known Member

    Was a 30-year Alaskan resident. This is a Potlatch spoon. Some vocabulary:

    Many folk in Alaska call the panhandle "Southeast" and the art of our wonderful people "Tlingit-Haida" in part because of their legal status as regional ANSCA native folk and in part because some of their art forms have merged. So, it's a Tlingit-Haida potlatch spoon.

    A potlatch is a feast of sharing, both possessions as gifts, and of food. Here, I think (only the artist would know), the beaver has taken a man - a play on the opposite of what may by some be sadly thought as the reality. The beaver has 'out-foxed' the hunter.

    And as a sterling silver spoon, it's absolutely fabulous and was either gifted to someone in Southeast as a gift of honor, or sold as a tourist item.
     
  17. DragonflyWink

    DragonflyWink Well-Known Member

    Thank you, Kathy - I really like it a lot and am pleased to add it to my spoon collection...

    ~Cheryl
     
  18. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    Potlatch, ceremonial distribution of property and gifts to affirm or reaffirm social status, as uniquely institutionalized by the American Indians of the Northwest Pacific coast.
     
  19. all_fakes

    all_fakes Well-Known Member

    To add or clarify: it is a nice spoon, but I see no connection with any potlatch; it would have been made for sale; most cast items, if native designed, are by nature not one-of-a-kind. And Tlingit-Haida would be a bit of a misnomer.
     
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  20. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    Well, I got a coffee mug at a potlatch.....but it was dated and named as being gifted from the event !!
    ;):happy::happy::happy:
     
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