Skip Navigation

Chilkat Blanket

Arts of the Americas

CULTURE Tlingit
MEDIUM Mountain goat wool, cedar bark, caribou or whale sinew, dye
  • Place Made: Alaska, United States
  • DATES 18th century
    DIMENSIONS 53 15/16 x 69 1/8 in. (137 x 175.6 cm)  (show scale)
    COLLECTIONS Arts of the Americas
    ACCESSION NUMBER 30.1443
    CREDIT LINE Bequest of Dr. James S. Waterman
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION This blanket is very early and possibly Tshimshin in origin. Ceremonial blanket with black, blue, yellow and white design probably the "Diving Whale." The head of the whale with his nostrils is at the bottom, the center face is his body with his 'spirit' inside it, the tail flukes are spread out on lower section also with eyes inside. The front flukes flank the head.The side panels (not shown in photograph) are probably a young raven. Although very worn this is a very finely woven, old robe with no commercial elements in it. There is an artist signature in the weaving by the side fringe. This is possibly the same robe depicted in G.T Emmons, "The Chilkat Blanket," AMNH Memoirs, Vo. 111. part 1V, fig. 568B. Source for design and weaving information, Cheryl Samuels, "The Chilkat Blanket," Pacific Search Press, Seattle, 1982. See also her dedication page where signature of weaver is given , appears to be the same as this blanket.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Tlingit. Chilkat Blanket, 18th century. Mountain goat wool, cedar bark, caribou or whale sinew, dye, 53 15/16 x 69 1/8 in. (137 x 175.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Dr. James S. Waterman, 30.1443. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1443_acetate_bw.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 30.1443_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
    You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
    RECORD COMPLETENESS
    Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.
    Tlingit. <em>Chilkat Blanket</em>, 18th century. Mountain goat wool, cedar bark, caribou or whale sinew, dye, 53 15/16 x 69 1/8 in. (137 x 175.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Dr. James S. Waterman, 30.1443. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1443_acetate_bw.jpg)