Fire-Sticks (2 Sets)

Item number E74379-0 from the National Museum of Natural History.

Public

Item Records

This page shows all the information we have about this item. Both the institution that physically holds this item, and RRN members have contributed the knowledge on this page. You’re looking at the item record provided by the holding institution. If you scroll further down the page, you’ll see the information from RRN members, and can share your own knowledge too.

The RRN processes the information it receives from each institution to make it more readable and easier to search. If you’re doing in-depth research on this item, be sure to take a look at the Data Source tab to see the information exactly as it was provided by the institution.

These records are easy to share because each has a unique web address. You can copy and paste the location from your browser’s address bar into an email, word document, or chat message to share this item with others.

Data
Data Source

This information was automatically generated from data provided by National Museum of Natural History. It has been standardized to aid in finding and grouping information within the RRN. Accuracy and meaning should be verified from the Data Source tab.

Notes

Provenience note: collection apparently purchased or collected by McLean in Sitka and vicinity circa 1884.From card: "[1] Trocadero/July, 1885. Illus. in USNM AR, 1888; fig. 1, p. 535; also in Proceedings USNM, vol. 73, Art. 14; fig. 1; p. 10." From old 19th or early 20th century typed exhibit label stored with artifact: "Fire drill and tinder of cedar, Thuja gigantea, slightly charred, in order to repel moisture. Tinder of frayed cedar bark. Lower piece [hearth] shows three cavities, in which the spindle works, with their accompanying furrows for collecting the dust in which the spark appears. Length of lower piece and spindles 23 i[nches]. Tlingit Inds., Sitka, Alaska. Two spindles are often kept with the set on account, perhaps, of the difficulty in procuring a round seasoned stick on an emergency."In 2023, Paz Nunez-Regueiro, Head of the Americas collection at the Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac confirmed that object that went to the Trocadero is still there at Branly, now as catalog number 71.1885.78.71.