Rectangular wooden quillwork box with lid (part b). Box is made of birch bark and covered with quillwork forming chevron patterns. The two short sides of the box have a curved lip. The lid also has a dense pattern of quillwork over it.

Birchbark basket (part a) with decorated lid (part b). Basket is round with straight sides, base and rim separate pieces of bark that have been stitched on with root ties. A scalloped bark ring has been similarly stitched on, beneath the root-wrapped lip. Lid construction is similar to basket, with a strip of birch for rim and a top piece stitched on with root. Lid design is a flower pattern in an ‘x’ shape made from dyed root. Underside of lid has a birch lining, covering the bottom root stitches.

«Associated with the baby sack is an irregularly shaped wrapper made from a number of tanned skins, probably from unborn animals. At irregular intervals along the edges are short ties of the same material. An infant would be wrapped in such a wrapper before being placed in the baby sack. » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982),

« An improvised pipe made from a piece of rolled birch bark tied with a short section of rawhide line is an important implement in bear hunting (fig. 9h). After an animal is killed, the hunters gather about it and smoke. Out of respect, the bear is also given a smoke with a pipe like this one (Speck, 1935, pp. 100-101). » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.17.

« A rectangular birch bark case of unknown use is sewn with twine at intervals on two sides and has a loop of the same material at the open end. It is decorated on both sides with identical floral designs (fig. 9m). » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.9, fig 9m (p.37). « Another set of nine patterns, which includes human forms, a fish, a canoe, and floral stencils, is described by Speck as having been used for bead and silk work (fig. 14). However, one of the patterns, that of a fish, was used on a previously described comb case (fig. 91). Speck (1935, pp. 190-191) has noted that for the Montagnais, the symbolic pictorial representation of a plant or animal was equivalent to the actual plant or animal and those portrayed were believed to come under the control of the individual human spirit. Dreams played a major part in suggesting the relationship between specific animals or plants and an individual. The spirit was strengthened by having its dream promptings obeyed and success in subsistence activities was thereby assured. » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.10, fig 9l (p.37). « A characteristic feature of these baskets is the presence of etched designs on tops and sides. The primary method of producing this ornamentation is by laying cut-out birch bark design patterns on the surface and scraping away the dark inner bark everywhere except where the design has been traced with the point of a knife. The positive design thus stands out dark against a light background (Speck, 1937, p. 71).» Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.9.

« The mouth is closed by a wooden plug (fig. 5i). A grease container made from the bladder sac of an otter was for cold bear grease that hunters carried with them to add to their food. The drinking of animal grease was also believed to induce dreaming and was thus an important element in the practice of magic (Speck, 1935, pp. 180-181). This specimen is in very poor condition and its original size and shape cannot be determined. » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.10.

« The collection contains a set of four birch bark cut-out patterns of floral motifs (fig. 13) used on one of the illustrated covered baskets (fig. 12). Another set of nine patterns, which includes human forms, a fish, a canoe, and floral stencils, is described by Speck as having been used for bead and silk work (fig. 14). However, one of the patterns, that of a fish, was used on a previously described comb case (fig. 91). Speck (1935, pp. 190-191) has noted that for the Montagnais, the symbolic pictorial representation of a plant or animal was equivalent to the actual plant or animal and those portrayed were believed to come under the control of the individual human spirit. Dreams played a major part in suggesting the relationship between specific animals or plants and an individual. The spirit was strengthened by having its dream promptings obeyed and success in subsistence activities was thereby assured. » Vanstone, James W. "The Speck Collection of Montagnais Material Culture from the Lower St. Lawrence Drainage, Quebec." Fieldiana. Anthropology. New Series, No. 5 (October 29, 1982), p.10, fig 14 (p.42).