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Image Not Available for Shark Reliquary
Shark Reliquary
Image Not Available for Shark Reliquary

Shark Reliquary

Date19th century
Label TextA sacred activity for men in the eastern Solomon Islands, fishing revolves around the appearance of schools of skipjack bonito fish (a member of the tuna family). Young men launch canoes to follow a teeming confluence of species that are attracted to the large bonito. Fish hawks, terns, and frigate birds chase bait fish alongside the speedy bonito, which move in unpredictable ways that challenge fishermen. When the tumult passes, sharks swarm in to grab whatever they can. Men place the skulls of the deceased in a reliquary like this for eternal protection by this apex predator.
Object number2020.5.1
ProvenanceBruce Saunders, Brisbane, Australia; [Conru African and Oceanic Art, Brussels, Belgium]; [Lewis/Wara Gallery, Seattle, Washington]; purchased from gallery by Mark Groudine, Seattle, Washington, 2011; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2020
Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pacific Currents, Mar. 15, 2015 - Apr. 22, 2018. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pacific Species, Dec. 12, 2022 - ongoing.
Credit LineGift of Mark Groudine and Cynthia Putnam
Dimensions33 x 74 x 23 in. (83.8 x 188 x 58.4cm)
MediumWood and mother-of-pearl shell
Dan
Object number: 81.17.1731
Staff: (Batume)
Object number: 74.29
Staff for Esu (Ogo Elegba)
Object number: 81.17.592
Initiation doll
Melanesian
Object number: 81.17.1500
Dance paddle (Kaidiba)
Melanesian
early 20th century
Object number: 57.158
Melanesian
19th - 20th century
Object number: 2020.5.2
Reliquary casket
French, probably Limoges
ca. 1200 - 1225
Object number: 49.38
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
Japanese
12th-14th century
Object number: 56.247
Food bowl: Frigate bird with shark
Melanesian
20th century
Object number: 65.24
Lukwalil (feast dish)
Calvin Hunt (Tlasutiwalis)
1994
Object number: 94.63