Alaska, Inuit
Circa 1900
Walrus ivory
Length 10 1/2" (26.7 cm)
Provenance: Bill Henderson, Olympia, WA
Needle cases were essential objects in Inuit women's material culture, used to store the fine bone and ivory needles required for sewing skin clothing, kayak covers, and other essential equipment. Carved ivory needle cases of this type served both a protective function and expressed the maker's skill, the carving often incorporating figural elements that personalized the object and connected it to the broader Inuit tradition of animating functional objects with imagery. Cases produced circa 1900 represent the period in which traditional needle case production intersected with an emerging outside market for carved ivory objects.
This case is carved from walrus ivory with figural elements along the shaft and a Billiken figure carved at the terminal end, the Billiken being a good-luck figure adopted by King Island Inuit carvers in the early 20th century and closely associated with their carving tradition. The piece is complete and intact, the carving confident and the ivory developed to a warm cream tone through age. Provenance traces to Bill Henderson of Olympia, Washington.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Alaska, Inuit
Circa 1900
Walrus ivory
Length 10 1/2" (26.7 cm)
Provenance: Bill Henderson, Olympia, WA
Needle cases were essential objects in Inuit women's material culture, used to store the fine bone and ivory needles required for sewing skin clothing, kayak covers, and other essential equipment. Carved ivory needle cases of this type served both a protective function and expressed the maker's skill, the carving often incorporating figural elements that personalized the object and connected it to the broader Inuit tradition of animating functional objects with imagery. Cases produced circa 1900 represent the period in which traditional needle case production intersected with an emerging outside market for carved ivory objects.
This case is carved from walrus ivory with figural elements along the shaft and a Billiken figure carved at the terminal end, the Billiken being a good-luck figure adopted by King Island Inuit carvers in the early 20th century and closely associated with their carving tradition. The piece is complete and intact, the carving confident and the ivory developed to a warm cream tone through age. Provenance traces to Bill Henderson of Olympia, Washington.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
