Kwanxwaml (Thunderbird Hamat'sa headdress)

early 20th century

Constructed in several pieces and attached to a cloth head ring, this exuberant depiction of Thunderbird would be worn by the subdued hamat’sa dancer during the final phase of initiation. Following the dancer’s restoration to a normal state, he and others will don masks depicting family crests, such as Thunderbird.

Yellow cedar, cedar bark, cloth, and paint

10 x 14 1/2 x 24 1/2 in. (25.4 x 36.83 x 62.23 cm)

Gift of John H. Hauberg

91.1.5

Provenance: Micheal R. Johnson, Seattle, Washington, until 1973; John H. Hauberg, Seattle, Washington, 1973-1991; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Documents International: Reflections in the Mirror: A World of Identity, April 23, 1998 - June 20, 1999

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

Published ReferencesThe Spirit Within: Northwest Coast Native Art from the John H. Hauberg Collection, Seattle Art Museum, 1995, pg. 218

Holm, Bill, Box of Daylight: Northwest Coast Indian Art, Seattle Art Museum, University of Washington Press, 1983, no. 54, 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.

Learn more about Equity at SAM