A Wealth of Thought. Boas Franz

      2. The Use of Masks and Head Ornaments on the Northwest Coast of America

      Boas first briefly discusses the difficulty of obtaining information on the meaning of Northwest Coast art. Then he categorizes three types of masks: the helmets found in the north (among the Tlingit), masks attached to housefronts and totem poles, and dancing masks. Two classes of dancing masks of the Bella Coola and the Kwakiutl are those worn at potlatches and those worn during the winter ceremonials. The remainder of the essay is a description of the winter ceremonies of the Kwakiutl with references to some of the paraphernalia worn by participants.

      This essay represents a preview of Boas’s 1897 “Social Organization and the Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl Indians” and his 1898 “Mythology of the Bella Coola Indians.” In those later publications, he used somewhat different linguistic notations from those he uses here.

      Our museums contain large collections of masks from the Northwest Coast of America, but it is only occasionally that the descriptions and catalogues give information as to their use and meaning. On my first visit to British Columbia, in 1886, I paid special attention to this subject. A considerable collection of drawings and photographs of masks, which I carried with me, did not help me materially in my investigations. I frequently showed the drawings to Indians whom I expected to be conversant with everything referring to this subject, but it was only in rare cases that they recognized the masks and were able to give any information as to their use and meaning. Very soon I arrived at the conclusion that, except in a few instances, the masks were no conventional types representing certain ideas known to the whole people, but were either inventions of the individuals who used them, or that the knowledge of their meaning was confined to a limited number of persons. The former hypothesis did not seem probable, as the same types of masks are found in numerous specimens and in collections made at different times and by different persons. Among the types which are comparatively frequently found, I mention the Tsonō’k˙oa¹ of the Kwakiutl, … the crane, eagle, and raven.

      Further inquiries showed that the probability of ascertaining the meaning of a mask increased when the particular village was visited in which the specimen was collected. It was thus that I ascertained the meaning of the double mask figured in Woldt’s “Cpt. Jacobsen’s Reise an der Nordwestküste Amerikas” [Jacobsen 1884:129]. The outer face represents a deer; the inner, a human face. It refers to the tradition of the origin of the deer, which originally was a man, but was transformed, on account of his intention to kill the son of the deity, into its present shape. At last I found that the use of masks is closely connected with two institutions of these tribes—with their clans or gentes, and with their secret societies. The latter class of masks is confined to the Kwakiutl, Nutka, and Tsimshian, and I believe that they originated with the first-named people. The meaning of each mask is not known outside the gens or society to which it belongs. [Boas uses “gens” or “clan” here for what he later calls “numaym” (see Suttles 1991).]

      This fact makes the study one of great difficulty. It is only by chance that a specimen belonging to one of our collections can be identified, as only in rare exceptions the place where it was purchased is clearly stated. The majority of specimens are purchased in Victoria, where they are collected by traders, who, of course, keep no record of their origin.

      Besides this, the Indians are in the habit of trading masks, and copying certain models which strike their fancy from neighboring tribes. The meaning of these specimens is, of course, not known to the people who use it, and it is necessary to study first the source from which such carvings were derived. Thus the beautiful raven rattles of the Tsimshian are frequently imitated by the Kwakiutl, and the beautifully woven Chilcat blankets are used as far south as Comox. The carved headdresses of the Tsimshian, the Amhalai’t (used in dances), with their attachment of ermine skins, are even used by the natives of Victoria.

      My inquiries cover the whole coast of British Columbia. In the extreme northern part of this region a peculiar kind of mask, which has been so well described by Krause [1885], is used as a helmet. I do not think that this custom extends very far south. Setting this aside, we may distinguish two kinds of masks: dancing masks and masks attached to housefronts and heraldic columns.

      The latter are especially used by tribes of Kwakiutl lineage and by the Bilqula [Bella Coola]. All masks of this kind are clan masks, having reference to the crest of the house owner or post owner. They are generally made of cedarwood and from three to five feet high. One of the most beautiful specimens I have seen is a mask of the sun, forming the top of an heraldic column in Alert Bay, Vancouver Island. It belongs to the chief of the gens Sī’sentlē of the Nimkish tribe. The latter is the second in rank among the tribes of the Kwakiutl group, which form one of the subdivisions of the linguistic stock of the same name. The clan claims to be descended from the sun, who assumed the shape of a bird, and came down from heaven. He was transformed into a man, and settled in the territory of the Nimkish tribe. The name of this mask is Tlēselak^• umtl (sun mask, from tlē’sela, sun; ik• umtl, mask). It has a bird’s face, and is surrounded by rays. Certain clans of the Bilqula have the mythical Masmasalā’niq, covered by an immense hat, on the tops of their house-fronts; but the use of masks for this purpose is, on the whole, not very extensive.

      In order to understand their meaning and use, it is necessary to investigate very thoroughly the social organization of each tribe, and to study these masks in connection with the carvings represented on the posts and beams of the houses and with the paintings found on the housefronts. Thus the Kwakiutl proper are the highest in rank among the group to which the Nimkish belong. They are divided into four groups, which rank as follows: first, the Kue’tela; next the K˙’o’moyue or Kue’qa (the latter being their war name); then the Lo’kuilila; and finally the Walaskwakiutl. Each of these is divided into a number of clans, some of which, however, belong to two or three of these divisions. I shall mention here the divisions of the Kue’tela only, again arranged according to rank, and shall add their principal carvings.

      1. The noblest clan is that of Matakila. Their chief wears a mask representing the gull, and they use also masks of animals representing the food of the gull. Their beams are not carved.

      2. Kwokwa’k˙um. The posts supporting the beams of the house represent the grizzly bear, on top of which a crane is sitting. Their mask represents the crane.

      3. Gye’qsem. Their post represents a crane standing on a man’s head.

      4. La’alaqs’end’aio, who are the servants of the Kwokwa’k˙um. Their post is a killer (Delphinus orca) with a man’s body.

      5. Si’sintlē (the same clan as that of the Nimkish). Their carving is the sun. Besides this, they use a dog’s mask, representing the dog which accompanied the sun when he was transformed into a man, the Tsonō’k˙oa, and several other carvings.

      Each clan has a number of secondary carvings which have reference to the traditions relating the adventures of its ancestor.

      As will be seen from this list, the emblems are also used as dancing masks. The use of masks for this purpose is spread all over the coast, being found among the Tlingit as well as among the tribes near Victoria; but among the latter very few types of masks are used, and it is the privilege of certain tribes and clans to wear them.… a number of these masks are illustrated. Before discussing their meaning, I have to say a few words as to the use of dancing masks.

      We may distinguish two classes of dancing masks—those peculiar to the several clans and those belonging to secret societies.

      The former are of two different kinds—masks used at the potlatch (the festival at which property is given away), and masks used for the mimical performances in winter, when dances representing the traditions of the clans are acted. Masks must not be used in summer and during daylight, except the potlatch masks. The