The stylized, dashed-feather designs and movable features of this mask are typical of the Tsimshian naxnox paraphernalia. Naxnox names were owned by family lineages and were assumed by the adult members of those lineages. Naxnox names would be dramatized in the masked dances which preceded potlatches, during which the audience was challenged to identify the spirit portrayed.
Copper is a symbol of wealth.
Also, the mouth is rigged so that when it is open a copper sheath can be pulled up over the teeth.