A contemporary Tlingit-style wooden halibut hook carved by Leslie Isaacs (Native name: Tsaandaay/Ts'aang Gaay), a Haida craftsman, in Craig, Prince of Wales Alaska in March 2013 and commissioned by Jonathan Malindine for educational purposes. It is an example of the kinds of hooks that were produced and used by both Tlingit and Haida peoples of Southeast Alaska. The name of the artifact in the local language is náxw (Lingít [Tlingit]), or ýagw táawaay (Xaad kil [Haida]). Such hooks were used by the people of the Northwest Coast to catch large halibut. Bait was tied at the intersection of the two wooden elements. Fished just off the ocean floor, a biting halibut will become hooked when the barb is embedded into its head. This hook has been carved from red cedar and yellow cedar and has a deer bone spike (Sitka black-tailed deer, Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis). Jonathan Malindine comments that hooks such as this one are now only rarely used for fishing. Their "function now is primarlly decorative, while production is an act of connection to cultural heritage." He notes that usually the upper element (i.e. non-barbed, wooden section) is carved with various motifs and figures. This object represents a standard, perhaps utilitarian, exammple of a traditional Northwest Coast halibut hook. The fish hook was sent to SI wrapped in a tan soft leather which is included in storage with the object, but may not have any cultural significance.

Model canoe (part a) with four paddles (parts b-e) and five figures (parts f-j). The boat is long, narrowing toward the ends, widest at midpoint. The outer walls of the canoe have painted designs in red, black and green at both ends and on both sides; the central area is unpainted. Five benches span the width of the canoe’s interior. The paddler figures are painted red, with black hair; all five are painted with green mask-like faces, with black eyes and red lips. The four carved paddles are painted with black, red and green bands.

Bentwood grease bowl, with curved sides and carved ends. On the front of the bowl a human figure appears from behind a bear’s head: head and arms above the bear’s eyebrows, feet emerging from under the bear’s mouth. The claws are represented on the opposite end of the bowl alongside another human figure with its face turned upward. Operculum shells are inlaid in the bear’s mouth as teeth. The surface has been coated in grease.

Bentwood box with painted black and red designs. Box is almost square with three steamed corners. The fourth corner and the bottom panel are nailed. All four sides are painted. The designs cover the upper 3/4 of each side, with a thick red line painted all around the box, below the designs. The lid is made of two pieces of planked wood.

Red cedar bentwood box (part a) with lid (part b). The box has three bentwood corners, curved and rounded, with pegs at the fourth corner. The lid has rounded edges, and is slightly thicker than the base. The front and back have circular paintings, with a different design inside each. Both have a red scalloped (U-forms) design around the entire outer edge of the circle. The ends of the box have simpler ovoid style designs. Designs are painted using mineral-based pigments.

Fish club carved in the form of a sea lion. Its head has prominent eyes, open mouth with teeth, and small ears. Its side has defined tail flippers, ribs and spine. The handle is shaped with finger grooves for a strong grip, and a small handle drilled through.

The paper is white. The ink is red and black.

Axel Rasmussen Collection. Collected: Axel Rasmussen

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.