Tlingit, Northwest Coast
19th century
Bone
Height 1¼ in. (3.18 cm), length 4⅛ in. (10.48 cm)
Provenance: Private Northwest collection; Bushells Auction House, Seattle, Washington
A Tlingit shaman's charm carved from bone, the surface worked into a single animal figure in the round eyed, formline manner of the Northwest Coast. A drilled hole near the center allowed the amulet to be suspended, worn, or lashed to the shaman's regalia. The bone has taken on a warm, deeply worn patina from generations of handling.
Charms of this kind were central to the practice of Northwest Coast shamans, who called on spirit helpers to heal, divine, and influence events. Their imagery is distinctive, favoring animal spirits often shown with skeletal features and figures caught in transformation between human and animal form. The bared teeth, large eye, and clasped limbs seen here belong to that visual language of spiritual power.
Dating to the nineteenth century, the charm descends from a private Northwest collection and passed most recently through Bushells Auction House in Seattle, Washington. The density of the carving and the depth of the patina mark it as an early and much-handled example of its type.
This item contains ESA antique exempt bone and cannot be sold internationally, or to anyone residing in the states of California, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington. We guarantee that it was made prior to 1972. We ship free within the United States, fully insured, packed by hand.
Tlingit, Northwest Coast
19th century
Bone
Height 1¼ in. (3.18 cm), length 4⅛ in. (10.48 cm)
Provenance: Private Northwest collection; Bushells Auction House, Seattle, Washington
A Tlingit shaman's charm carved from bone, the surface worked into a single animal figure in the round eyed, formline manner of the Northwest Coast. A drilled hole near the center allowed the amulet to be suspended, worn, or lashed to the shaman's regalia. The bone has taken on a warm, deeply worn patina from generations of handling.
Charms of this kind were central to the practice of Northwest Coast shamans, who called on spirit helpers to heal, divine, and influence events. Their imagery is distinctive, favoring animal spirits often shown with skeletal features and figures caught in transformation between human and animal form. The bared teeth, large eye, and clasped limbs seen here belong to that visual language of spiritual power.
Dating to the nineteenth century, the charm descends from a private Northwest collection and passed most recently through Bushells Auction House in Seattle, Washington. The density of the carving and the depth of the patina mark it as an early and much-handled example of its type.
This item contains ESA antique exempt bone and cannot be sold internationally, or to anyone residing in the states of California, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington. We guarantee that it was made prior to 1972. We ship free within the United States, fully insured, packed by hand.
