mokuk; birchbark container

mokuk; birchbark container

mokuk; birchbark container

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Introduction

Mokuk made of one piece of folded birchbark and an attached lid, filled with maple sugar. Porcupine quillwork in geometric floral motifs on the front and back. Lid features zigzag motifs. Collected by Johann Georg Schwarz in the 1820s, this item is currently housed at the Weltmuseum Wien, Austria.

Name of Maker(s): Unknown Odawa artist
Nation of Maker: Odawa
Nation of Origin

Autumn Epple theorizes based on style and materials, as well as similar mokuks collected by Schwarz, that this object was made by the Odawa.

Date Made or Date Range: Before 1822
Summary of Source(s) for this Relative

GRASAC research notes created during an onsite visit to Weltmuseum in January of 2016.

Materials

Birchbark, porcupine quills, thread, splint along rim.

Techniques or Format

One piece of folded birchbark and an attached lid; sides have vertical seam; sewn together with thread.

Motifs and Patterns

Zigzags on lid, geometric floral motifs (very transitional designs between geometric and floral).

Dimensions: 9.5 × 4 × 5 cm
Condition: Good.
Reasons for connecting this relative with particular times, materials, styles and uses

Johann Georg Schwarz collected this item, possibly when he traveled to Detroit and through Upper Canada in the winter of 1820-1821.

Catalogue, Accession or Reference Number: 012038
Collection at Current Location: Schwarz Collection
Date Relative was First Removed or Collected from its Community Context: 1820s
Previous Collectors: Johann Georg Schwarz
Collection Narratives and Histories

Johann Georg Schwarz traveled to Detroit and through Upper Canada in the winter of 1820-1821.

GKS Reference Number: 59017
How to Cite this Item

Unknown Odawa artist, mokuk. Currently in the Weltmuseum Wien, Vienna, Austria, 12038. Item photographed and described as part of a GRASAC research trip January 2016; GRASAC item id 59017.

Record Creation Context

In January of 2016, a small team of GRASAC researchers visited the collection to study and photograph it: Ruth Phillips, Lisa Truong, Naomi Recollet (Anishinaabe (Odawa/Ojibwe), Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory) and Wahsontiio Cross (Mohawk, Kahnawake). This GKS record was created in December of 2021 by GRASAC RA Aidan Mitchell-Boudreau.

Approximate Place of Origin

43.0612, -78.4489