Hinkeet'sam—Sea serpent

ca. 1910

This headdress is a witness to cultural survival. Annie Watts and George Clutesi were leaders who defied the Canadian government’s ban of traditional practices from 1885 to 1951. Watts cared for this headdress for many years and helped revive songs and dances at Port Alberni. Before Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Victoria in 1951, Watts is recorded in photographs and film as she instructed young girls to perform with it. Graceful sea serpent dances are the prerogative of women and are still ongoing today.

Red cedar, brass tacks, and paint

9 1/2 x 8 1/2 x 25 in. (24.13 x 21.59 x 63.5 cm)

Gift of John H. Hauberg

91.1.25

Provenance: Micheal R. Johnson, Seattle, Washington, until 1971; John H. Hauberg, Seattle, Washington, 1971-1991; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington

Photo: Paul Macapia

Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, The Box of Daylight, Sept. 15, 1983 - Jan. 8, 1984.

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pacific Species, Dec. 12, 2022 - ongoing.

Published ReferencesMcDowell, Jim, Father August Branbant: Savior or Scourge? The First Colonial Missionary Among the Nuu-Chah-Nulth, 2012, Ronsdale Press, pg. 388

Holm, Bill, The Spirit Within: Northwest Coast Native Art from the John H. Hauberg Collection, Seattle Art Museum, 1995, pg. 266

Box of Daylight: Northwest Coast Indian Art, Seattle Art Museum, University of Washington Press, 1983, no. 55, p. 46, illus.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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