Wooden Mask

"This is a carving of the water shadow "te ye qu"."
Source of the information below: Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center Alaska Native Collections: Sharing Knowledge website, by Aron Crowell, entry on this artifact http://alaska.si.edu/record.asp?id=343 , retrieved 9-21-2011: The collector labeled the back "Te-yequ / water shadow." Phillip Arrow from Shageluk identified this as a small maskette worn by messengers who were sent by one village to another to invite its residents to a Mask Dance (Giyema).(1) The central face, with its painted "eyeglasses," resembles a pair of Mask Dance messenger masks used at Anvik in the 1930s, while the overall shape, with its tail and wings, may represent a crow.(2) At Anvik, according to Osgood, "When preparations for the dance had been finished, each of the two men who have agreed to act as messengers takes one of the pair of maskettes and begins the ceremonial act of departing from the kashim [ceremonial house]. Each stands at one side of the entrance door facing the other and holding a maskette against the forehead. Then in unison they make the wolf cry �sh-sh-sh-gri-i-i,� the moan of the wild one which rises and falls in a continuing sound. After this they set off on their journey . . . ."(3) The Mask Dance was performed to increase the abundance of animals that were hunted for food, and as an opportunity to "put down" gifts that honored others and added to the prestige of the giver.(4) It took place in late winter or spring, after intensive preparations to ready the masks, songs, drums, food, and gifts. The two-day ceremony included dances and masks that portrayed many different animals, birds, fish, as well as human or human-like beings - the One-Eyed Man, Jumping Men, the Half-Man, Up River People, the Old Man, Old Woman, and others. Women danced without masks on their faces but with small caribou hair-fringed finger masks held in their hands.(5) 1. Osgood 1958:83; VanStone 1978:27 2. Osgood 1958:80, Fig. 5, bottom 3. Osgood 1958:83 4. Chapman 1907; Osgood 1958:81-96 5. Osgood 1970:427; Osgood 1958:94, Fig, 13
From discussion with Phillip Arrow, Trimble Gilbert, Eliza Jones and Judy Woods at the National Museum of Natural History and National Museum of the American Indian, 5/17/2004-5/21/2004. Also participating: Aron Crowell (NMNH), Kate Duncan (Arizona State University) and Suzi Jones (AMHA). In this entry, the Elders speak in different Athabascan dialects: Phillip Arrow, Deg Xinag; Trimble Gilbert, Gwich�in; Eliza Jones, Central Koyukon; and Judy Woods, Upper Koyukon: Trimble Gilbert: That�s a good one. Phillip Arrow: This part [central face] right here, they used to use it for the Messenger [Feast] or something. They make it small though. They tie it right here [to face]. They go to another town and they tell the old people, that�s why they say Messenger. They name that mask Messenger, that�s telling the people to come. But this part [tail feathers] is maybe something too. Looks like crow. I bet that�s what it is, because I�ve seen some crow masks, had this kind [central face] of design on it. It�s not carved in like that though. On the ones I�ve seen, the design is painted on with something. Eliza Jones: Oh, it could be like a crow. So this is its wing, and this could be its tail. Judy Woods: And its nose [beak] right there [below face]. Eliza Jones: So you would have the same word for that mask? Phillip Arrow: Giyema k�idz [small mask] they call it. K�idz means �small,� giyema means �mask.� I mean this one [central face]. Aron Crowell: What do the glasses mean? Why do they put the glasses on the faces? Phillip Arrow: I don�t know why they put that. I use it too on the ones I make. I�ve seen those old masks used with that kind of line, the glasses. I copy those. Eliza Jones: So, what kind of wood do you think this is? Phillip Arrow: It�s painted. It�s hard to tell. Maybe you can tell by this one [red wing] though. That�s spruce tree look like. Trimble Gilbert: It looks like one of these [wings] broke off, and maybe they replaced this [red wing]. It�s got to be same [blue] color on this side [red wing]. Well, this makes me think on the Messenger meet that you have to be ahead of the people, send the message out. Maybe that�s why it�s just like a bird flying, maybe ahead of the people to deliver the message. Judy Woods: And crow, they say, is a messenger.
Eliza Jones: Yes. In our tradition, in the stories, the dotson�, the �raven� was always the chief, even though he�s a scavenger and sometimes does silly things. And you know in the stories, you kind of ridicule it, but still you have lot of respect for it. Judy Woods: Mm-hmm, even now we have.