Soapberry spoon
xakwl’l shál
“soapberry spoon”
Language:
Lingít
The people came together for gift giving sometimes…Friends came together just to visit with friends. They brought gifts like that. Maybe at the time they made this it was a small gift, but now it’s considered a very huge gift.
—Clarence Jackson, 2005
Soapberries are a prized feast food, traditionally acquired from Athabascan trading partners. Dried berries are whipped with water to make red foam and eaten with carved hardwood spoons. This spoon has a spine-like design along the handle, along with a bird’s head pointing toward the end, and a spirit face on the back of the bowl.
Culture:
Tlingit
Region:
Admiralty Island, Southeast Alaska
Village:
Kootznahoo (Letushkwin)
Object Category:
Ceremony
Dimensions:
Length 38.3cm
Accession Date:
1882
Source:
John J. McLean (collector, U.S. Signal Service)
Museum:
National Museum of Natural History
Museum ID Number:
E060147
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