The First Nations of the Northwest Coast have a way of life which is oriented toward the sea. As a part of a special exhibition, Orcas: Our Shared Future, in the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in Portland, Oregon, there was an exhibit entitled Honour for Killer Whales.
According to OMSI:
“More than 126 communities representing upwards of 28 indigenous nations line the West Coast from present-day Washington State to Southeast Alaska. Orcas have been a part of these indigenous communities’ everyday lives since time immemorial. Coastal peoples have borne witness to generations of orcas, and have recorded the whales’ intelligence, camaraderie and majesty. True honour is given to orcas who share coastal oceans.
Everyday belongings immortalize past, present, and future relationships between humans, whales and the supernatural.”
One of the unique items among Northwest Coast Indians are kerfed or bentwood boxes in which the sides of the box are made by scoring and then bending a single board to form the sides of the box. The single side seam is then carefully fitted and sewn together with spruce root. The bottom of the box is also carefully fitted and sewn to the sides.
These boxes are waterproof, and some are used for cooking. The watertight boxes can be filled with water and when hot stones are dropped into the box the water can be brought to a boil. Archaeologists Kenneth Ames and Herbert Maschner, in their book Peoples of the Northwest Coast: Their Archaeology and Prehistory, write:
“The boxes had important advantages over pottery: they stacked more easily, were more transportable and fell less likely to break if dropped.”
More about the Northwest Coast
Indians 101: Northwest Coast Killer Whale crests (museum exhibit)
Indians 101: Killer Whale Potlatch Feast Bowl (museum exhibit)
Indians 101: Northwest Coast Baskets in the Maryhill Museum (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Suquamish Basketry (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Squamish Dancers (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Northwest Coast Masks (Photo Diary)
Indians 101: Northwest Coast Boxes, Bowls, and Ladles (Photo Diary)