Tlingit
Beaver Crest Hat
Tlingit, Late 19th century
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Tlingit
Beaver Crest Hat
Tlingit, Late 19th century
Physical Qualities
Wood, pigment, copper alloy, dentalium shell, mother of pearl, string, 10 5/8 x 14 3/8 x 15 3/8 in. (27 x 36.5 x 39 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Dena S. Katzenberg, Baltimore
Object Number
1992.257
A person's right to display certain crests, indicating their clan or lineage totem, depended upon their membership and rank in these groups. Totemic crests were displayed on many items including hats. Worn in feasts called potlatches, a chief could add rings to the hat each time he sponsored a potlatch. Strings of dentalium shells were valuable in trade and used as money across much of western North America.
Field Photo:
Joseph C. Farber, 1972-1974, in F. De Laguna, "Tlingit," in Northwest Coast (Handbook of North American Indians: Volume 7). 1990 (Smithsonian, NAA:86-3629).
The Baltimore Museum of Art by gift; Dena S. Katzenberg, Baltimore
Inscribed: None
