mkak, box, birchbark

mkak, box, birchbark

mkak, box, birchbark

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Introduction

This Anishinaabe mkak (box) is made from birchbark with a floral design made from quillwork. It was collected by Amos H. Gottschall between 1871 and 1902. Upon his death, his collection was likely left to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANS) in 1937. ANS gifted the collection to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in 1997, where it currently resides. 

Name of Maker(s): Unrecorded
Maker role: Artist
Nation of Maker: Anishinaabe Odawa
Reasons for connecting this relative with particular nation(s)

Gottschall's catalogue lists the mkak as being "Ottawa."

Place of Origin: Michigan (Northern Michigan), USA
Date Made or Date Range: before 1914
Summary of Source(s) for this Relative

The information in this record is based on museum documentation.

Materials

birchbark; sweetgrass; black thread; porcupine quills natural and dyed yellow, light pink, magenta, blue, light purple, orange; cedar or basswood twine and tassel, some dyed green; shellac or grease.

Techniques or Format

Made of two layers of birchbark, in the shape of a truncated pyramid, with a square lid. The base is made of a single piece with the sides folded up from the bottom, joined at the corners edged with sweetgrass sewn with black thread. The inner sides are separate panels, sewn to the outer layer at the top, with a bottom panel inserted inside.

The lid has been coated with a varnish. Two two-ply strings made of basswood or cedar dyed green, with tassels, one attached to the lid and one to the box, function as a closing mechanism. There are two handles made of braided basswood or cedar bark, tacked to the box with thread finished with a small single loop.

Motifs and Patterns

The multi-colored quillwork is done in a floral motif.

Other Notes

David Penny noted that the outer piece was cut in a way that that the outer side panels ended up having diagonal grains. This means that the inner pieces would have grains going in different directions than the outside panels.

Dimensions: 16 × 15.8 × 12 cm
Current Location: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Catalogue, Accession or Reference Number: 97-84-114A (box); 97-84-114B (box lid); L-84-114A-B (old museum numbers); 18113 (ANS number); I 1666 (Gottschall number)
Link to Institution's Collections Database: https://www.penn.museum/collections/object/44734
Date of Acquisition by the Institution: 1997
Who the Institution Acquired the Relative or Heritage Item From: Gift of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 1997
Collection Narratives and Histories

This mkak was collected by Amos H. Gottschall between 1871 and 1902. Upon his death, his collection was likely left to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANS) in 1937. ANS gifted the collection to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in 1997, where it currently resides

Publication History

Gottschall, Amos H. Priced and Descriptive Catalogue of the Utensils, Implements, Weapons, Ornaments, Etc., of the Indians, Mound Builders, Cliff Dwellers: Typical Collections No. 1. 1909. (See: I 1666)

GKS Reference Number: 24659
How to Cite this Item

Maker, Name unrecorded. Mkak, box, birchbark. GRASAC ID 24659. University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 97-84-114A & 97-84-114B.

Record Creation Context

Visit to University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, May 6 2010.
This record was augmented by Joy Kruse on August 10, 2024.

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