Brooklyn Museum: Collections: Arts of the Americas

Raven Rattle. Bella Bella, British Columbia, Canada. Tsimshian artist, 19th century. Wood, pigment, rattles, cotton twine, 5 1/2 x 14 x 4 in. (14 x 35.6 x 10.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1905, Museum Collection Fund, 05.588.7292

Said to originate in the north, perhaps among the Tsimshian, the raven rattle is now considered an item of traditional regalia throughout the Northwest Coast. Chiefs use these rattles as part of their ceremonial dress in dances. This rattle depicts a shaman on the back of a raven. It has a frog in its mouth, another frog touches its tongue, and frogs are on the feet. The bottom also has a raven carved with abstracted figures. All these representations are transformative animals that relate to the legendary stories of the tribe, and the sound of rattles forms a conduit to the supernatural world when the rattles are employed by shamans. The use of the raven rattle always implies power. For example, it is used in dances that demonstrate the status of the chief, who has a hereditary right to use it.

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