These are two objects from a collection of 230 objects that has recently been given to the university
The first is a Haida piece from the north of British Columbia.
It represents a seal. You’ve got a beautiful carving of a seal head there on one side.
And on the other side, you have a raven with a typical beak and the eyes
What’s wonderful about this piece is that it’s a transformation piece.
You look at the seal and then as you turn the dish over
you have a seamless transition into the beak of a bird
Inside of it you can see two channels which seem to come from the throat of the bird
and the seal and then meet in the centre
And this would have been where the oil was kept.
It’s a piece that was made to be shown, to attest to the status and prestige of its owner
and it would have been used in feasts.
The second piece I want to show you is a wonderful spoon that’s made of horn.
It’s from the south of the province, it’s Salish and quite different in its intention.
Here the art object is personal; it’s intimate.
The dog has a relationship perhaps with the person who owned it
The dog as you can see is beautifully carved.  It’s got a rib cage
it’s almost in a position in which it’s begging - it’s pleading for food
Emaciated rib cage, its paws drawn upwards, its head sticking outward
with its tongue imploringly asking for sustenance.
Very different from the first piece.
Both incredible masterworks of the carver’s art.
