Pomo. <em>Doctor's Headdress (guk-tsu-shua)</em>, 1906–1907. Crow feather, redbud or dogwood, wood, cotton string, Indian hemp, 25 x 39 x 29 in. (63.5 x 99.1 x 73.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1908, Museum Collection Fund, 08.491.8952. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 08.491.8952.jpg)

Doctor's Headdress (guk-tsu-shua)

Artist:Pomo

Medium: Crow feather, redbud or dogwood, wood, cotton string, Indian hemp

Dates:1906–1907

Dimensions: 25 x 39 x 29 in. (63.5 x 99.1 x 73.7 cm)

Collections:

Exhibitions:

Accession Number: 08.491.8952

Image: 08.491.8952.jpg,

Catalogue Description:
This Doctor's headdress was probably made by Dr. Hudson using gull feathers his wife gathered with special permission from the game warden. The Big-Head headdress or Kuksu shna, a ceremony involving the impersonation of a god. The feathers are attached to a twined redbud or dogwood framework, and a projecting snout, representing the long nose of the Kuksu spirit, is composed of short feathers attached to a stick. There has been some confusion as to if this is made correctly or it may have been rendered slightly differently by Hudson after a particular Pomo group.

Brooklyn Museum