Northwest Coast Polychrome Wood Headdress

of deeply convex form, with a raised bifurcating ridge descending downwards from the central cranium and terminating just above the nose, a slightly truncated chin line, parted lips, flaring nostrils and exaggerated wide set pointed oval eye rims beneath thick arching brows, painted in black and vermilion red details, the teeth and eyes inset with plaques of brilliant abalone, additional plaques of abalone on the periphery.

Collection of Adelaide DeMenil and Edmund Carpenter
Private New York Collection
Acquired by the present owner from the above

Institute of the Arts, Rice University, Houston, "Form and Freedom" October 23, 1975-January 25, 1976; Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, March 27-May 30, 1976; Art Gallery of South Austrailia, Adelaide, July 23-August 22, 1976; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, September 14-October 7, 1976; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, January 15-March 13, 1977; Seattle Art Museum, May 11-June 26, 1977; M.H. DeYoung Museum, San Francisco, March 25-May 25th, 1978; The Saint Louis Art Museum, October 19-December 31, 1978

Holm and Reid, 1975, Indian Art of the Northwest Coast, pl. 74

Very good condition with typical wear for its age. Minor hairline splits; stable.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

In his discussion of this headdress Reid states: "Fantastic frontlet. It doesn't comform to any style of Northwest Coast art, as far as I'm concerned, yet when I first saw it years ago it immediately had a Haida impact...Haida artists worked mostly within a rigid, formal system, but occasionally burst out and did crazy, wild things...It must have been a spectacular thing to be seen worn and probably outshone the exquisite frontlets and headdresses of other people at the feasts or wherever it was displayed."

For a comparable headdress identfied as the "spirit of the storm cloud" see Gunther, 1966, p. 105.