Lot 185
Native American, Northwest Coast, Haida Gwaii archipelago or Queen Charlotte Islands, Haida, ca. early to mid-19th century CE. An exceptional pipe, skillfully hand-carved from black argillite - a rare stone only found on the Queen Charlotte Islands, also known as the Haida Gwaii archipelago. This stunning vessel displays an elaborate zoomorphic design depicting a sea monster at the top grasping a killer whale as an otter lays on her back behind them. Featuring the deep, drilled out fill hole of the pipe on top of its head, the ferocious aquatic beast presents a reptilian appearance with an elongated snout, incised nostrils, a wide grin with 2 rows of gritted teeth, a petite beard, and pitch-set nacre shell eyes, all capped by a pair of perky ears. The monster's lengthy body shows a delineated rib cage, risen spikes that project from its back, extended arms bent at the elbows, and human-like hands grasping its prey - the whale. Size: 8.4" L x 1.7" W x 3.8" H (21.3 cm x 4.3 cm x 9.7 cm)
Below the monster, the orca exhibits huge eyes with nacre shell pupils, thick, full lips, and arm-like fins. The incised head of a bird extends in the opposite direction from the whale's fins, showcasing a circular, nacre shell eye and a long bill. Alternatively, the adorable otter lays on its back in a playful pose with its snout resting on its belly, limbs extended upwards, and its posterior serving as the mouthpiece to the pipe. A duck is shown below the otter, also boasting large eyes formed from nacre shell inlay.
Argillite is a fine-grained sedimentary rock that is essentially made of mud and ooze. The smooth appearance of this example indicates that it was likely carved from a hard, fine black silt argillite sometimes called "black slate" that is only found at a quarry on Slatechuck Mountain (or Kaagan in the Haida language) near the village of Skidegate on Graham Island in the Haida Gwaii archipelago. In the 19th century, the Haida people began to carve this material as a trade good for visiting Europeans and Americans, because of the decline of their traditional economic practice of fishing. Items like this one served as a way to show their artistic merit and introduce some of their iconography to the outside world.
According to the Canadian Museum of History, "Like other north coast peoples, the Haida believed that the souls of the deceased travelled first to the sky world in their cycle of reincarnation. Both prayers and souls could be helped on their journey by means of smoke rising from the central hearth of the house or by smoke rising from pipes. Prior to contact, the Haida used local tobacco. Pipe smoking became strongly associated with the extraordinary powers initially attributed to Europeans, particularly firearms, which not only smoked but brought instant injury or death. Many early pipes were made from the walnut of gunstocks and parts of gun barrels in order to capture and transfer the power of guns to pipes. At some point, argillite replaced recycled gun parts for the making of pipes, but fixing upon a date for the beginning of argillite carving has been something of a challenge to scholars. One clue was found by archaeologist Knut Fladmark of Simon Fraser University, who discovered a chiefly burial inside a house floor at Lawn Hill, on the east coast south of Rose Spit. A well-sculpted argillite pipe of a clam with a human face on it is related to this burial, which associated trade goods date to before 1820."
This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world's largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.
Provenance: private Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA collection, acquired in 2005; ex-George Schaffer estate, Washington, USA, acquired between 1840 and 1869
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Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#168775
- Condition: Minor chips to fill hole rim, base, and peripheries of some nacre shell inlays. Expected nicks and scratches in some areas. Otherwise, intact and excellent with impressive remaining detail and smooth surfaces.
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