Soul Catcher

ca. 1860

Shamans, called halait, skillfully manage powerful spirits that aid in combatting sickness and soul loss. This special amulet is a container that was manipulated while the shaman was in a trance, in order to locate and retrieve the wandering or bewitched soul of a person, thus restoring health.

Bone, abalone shell, and buckskin

1 5/8 x 1 1/8 in. (4.13 x 2.86 cm)

L.: 7 3/4 in.

Gift of John H. Hauberg

91.1.83

Photo: Paul Macapia

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, The Box of Daylight, September 15, 1983 - January 8, 1984

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Hauberg Collection - ParsonsGallery, August 22, 1985 - March 16, 1986

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, A Bead Quiz, July 1, 2008 - July 1, 2009

Published ReferencesSelected Works, Seattle, WA: Seattle Art Museum, 1991, p. 73

The Spirit Within: Northwest Coast Native Art from the John H. Hauberg Collection, Seattle, WA: Seattle Art Museum, 1995, p. 172

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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