Water Bucket Item Number: E20568A-0 from the National Museum of Natural History

Notes

FROM CARD: "20568A & B ILLUS.: HNDBK. N. AMER. IND., VOL. 7, NORTHWEST COAST, FIG. 4 (A ON LEFT, B ON RIGHT), PG. 316. LOANED RENWICK GAL. 11-7-73. LOAN RETURNED 8-24-76." Identified in Handbook caption as water bucket, "... a bent-corner box (the 4 sides made of a single board, kerfed, steamed, and folded into a box shape, the ends joined and a bottom attached with wooden pegs) with a wooden handle acrosss the top." Painted designs in red and black, and borders and handle red. Forms a set with dipper E20568B.FROM CARD: 20568A (BOX), 20568B (DIPPER). FROM PAGE 77, BOXES AND BOWLS CATALOG; RENWICK GALLERY, SMITHSONIAN PRESS; 1974. OBJECTS ILLUS. ON SAME PAGE. 68. BOX AND DIPPER WOOD; PAINTED BLACK AND RED. HEIGHT (BOX): 10 1/4. LENGTH (DIPPER): 11. BELLA BELLA, BRITISH COLUMBIA. "WATER BUCKET AND LADLE." COLLECTED BY JAMES G. SWAN. CATALOGED JANUARY 15, 1876. 20,568-A (BOX); 20,568-B (DIPPER)."Catalog card gives 5260 as accession number, but 4686 (also from Swan, in 1876) is more likely, as that accession contains objects from British Columbia.Karen Anderson (Nuxalk elder) and Clyde Tallio (Nuxalk) of the delegation from Bella Bella, Bella Coola and Rivers Inlet communities of British Columbia made the following comments during the Recovering Voices Community Research Visit May 20th - 24th, 2013. This is a water cooking box. Food was prepared in these using hot rocks. Everyone had these boxes; families often have regular boxes for eating and cooking at home and boxes for feasts and potlatches.