The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-04-28
ART OF NORTHERN INDIANS.
Observations of Pref. Franz Bons. Of
the .ycsuD EyDeditIcu

NEW YORK, April PA special double
number of the American Museum Jour
nal. issued today, contains a summary
OF the first of series Of papers by Prof.
Franz Boas detailing for the first time
some results of the Jesuo North Pacific
expedition the American Museum of
Natural History. The first paper of the
anthropological series treats of ,he ''F'a-
| eial Paintings of the Indians of Northern
British Columbia. In part it is as fol-
lows:
THE peculiar interest that attaches to
this region is founded on the fact that
here the Old World and the New come
into close contact The geographical con-
ditions favor migration along the coast
line and exchange of culture. Have such
migrations. has such an exchange of Gull
ture taken place? This question is of
great interest theoretically. The Ameri-
can continent is widely separated from
the land area of the Old World, so that
the geographical conditions are in favor
of the presumption that in the New World
culture developed uninfuenced by causes
acting in the Old World. Throughout the
Old World migrations have brought the
peoples of the most distant areas into
hostile or peaceful contact, so that there
is hardly a tribe that might be consid-
cred as uninfiuenced by others. If the
development of culture in the New World
has been quite independent of the adj
vances made in the Old World its culture
will be of the greatest value for purposes
of comparison.
1.-The types of man which we find on the
North Pacific Coast IF America, while
distinctly american, show great Atm
ity to North Asiatic forms, and the ques-
ton arises whether this affinity is due to
mixture, to migration. or to gradual diff
ferentiation.
THE art of the Indians of northern
British Columbia shows q peculiar devel-
opment. While among most primitive
people we find tendency to the devel-
opment of geometric designs, the Indians
of northern British Columbia use for dec
orative purposes almost exclusively ami
NAL motives The animal forms are high
ly conventionalized. and may be recog-
nized by a number of symbols character
istic of the various animals that the art
lists try to represent. The Indians have
adopted a peculiar method of adapting
the animal form to the decorative field
There is no endeavor to represent the
form by means of perspective. but the at
tempt is made to adapt the form as near
ly as possible to the decorative field by
means of distortion and dissection.
THE more clever an artist is in design
ing methods of distortion and dissection
which fill the decorative field and bring
into view all the important parts OF the
animal body, the greater is his success IL
will be seen therefore, that the greater
the difference between the form of the
decorative field and the form OF the amman
to be- represented. the greater will be the
difficulty of adaptation. When an animal
is TO be represented on bracelet, 1t is
shown as though il were cut from mead 10
tail and as though the arm were pushed
through the opening, the whole animal
thus surrounding the wrist. The same
method is followed in the decoration or
dishes where the sides of the animal are
shown on the sides of the dish, while the
opening of the dish represents the BACK
of the animal its bottom the lower side OF
the animal. When the animal form Is TO
be shown on fiat surfaces, the body is gen
orally represented as split in two, and
spread in both directions. so that 1t ap-
pears like two profiles placed side by side.
THE peculiaritieS of the conventional
ism of these tribes appear most clearly
where the difficulty Of adaptation of the
subject to the decorative field is greatest.
| concluded. therefore. that If l could OBJ
tain a series OF representations on very
difficult surfaces, the principles of conven-
tionalism wou'1 appear most clearly. No
surface seems to be more difficult to treat,
and to adapt tC animal forms. than the
human face. For this reason 4 resolved
to make a collection of facial paintings
such as are used by the Indians when
adorning themselves for festive dances.
These subjects that are used for this
purpose are largely the crests of the
various families. These are laid on in
black, red blue. and green; the colors
being mixed with grease, and put on with
the fingers, with brushes, or by means of
wooden stamps cut out for this purpose.
while a considerable series of facial
paintings are no more conventionalized
than the paintings found on other objects,
the intricacy of the decorative field has
led the Indians to develop geometrical de-
signs, although no other cases are known
in which such designs are applied by these
tribes TO symbolic animal forms. 1t is of
Importance to note that the same decora-
tons may symbolic variety of objects.
Thus, the design for the whales eye and
that for the after-image of the sun are
identical. The head of the eagle and the
evening sky are expressed by the same
painting. The ribs of the bear, the rock
slide. and the stratus cloud are much
alike that. without a statement on the
part Of the Indians. it would be impossi-
bic to know what is meant.
The collection which Is discussed in the
paper was obtained from q Haida chief,
one of the most famous artists of the
tribe.
Frederick A Constable has Just presented
to the American Museum of Natural His
tory collection OF shells. comprising
about 5000 specimens, and about 5000
species. mostly small, the uniydlves be-
ing especially well represented. Owing
to lack of space and the time needed for
classification. the collection mas not yet
been put on exhibition. The identifica-
tons of the specimens are, however. COM