Food bowl: Frigate bird with shark
Date20th century
Maker
Melanesian
Label TextA sequence of species in a food chain is commemorated in this bowl. In a season that lasts from November to April, fishermen watch for frigate birds, who follow schools of small bait fish and are signals that a school of bonito is coming. As the bonito and bait fish stir up whirlpools of frothy activity, sharks swarm behind and devour the residue. This vessel merges two species in their cycle of consumption and that serve humans in feasts.
Object number65.24
Provenance[Mathias Komer (1909-1984), New York, New York]; sold to Dr. Richard Fuller (1897-1976), Seattle, Washington; gifted to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 1965
Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pacific Species, Dec. 12, 2022 - ongoing.Credit LineEugene Fuller Memorial Collection
Dimensions8 7/8 x 9 1/4 x 28 1/4 in. (22.54 x 23.5 x 71.8cm)
MediumWood with inlaid mother-of-pearl
log in
