African Or Tlingit Copper Dagger

fearn · 25th August 2005, 06:48 PM

Hi All,

Obviously, I agree with some of the skepticism expressed about the "authenticity" of this piece.

However...

I was reading a book about the Cahuilla Indians of California. Over the last 50 years, they have taken to making rattles to accompany their traditional songs. These rattles used to be made out of old cans. Now they use gourds, heavily painted with acrylic paint and made using modern tools.

Some collectors have criticized these rattles, saying they weren't genuine. Their response was something we should all remember:

We're Cahuilla, and we made these rattles. Therefore, they are genuine Cahuilla rattles. The fact that they don't look like the ones in the museums from a century ago does not mean that they are not genuine. It simply means that collectors are imposing a false standard on our art. (this is a paraphrase).

I'm personally skeptical about the purported age of this piece, but unless it was made by a non-Tlingit, it's a genuine Tlingit knife. Until we know who made it, we might want to be more, ahem, nuanced in our use of genuine vs. reproduction.

F

25th August 2005, 06:48 PM	#9
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi All, Obviously, I agree with some of the skepticism expressed about the "authenticity" of this piece. However... I was reading a book about the Cahuilla Indians of California. Over the last 50 years, they have taken to making rattles to accompany their traditional songs. These rattles used to be made out of old cans. Now they use gourds, heavily painted with acrylic paint and made using modern tools. Some collectors have criticized these rattles, saying they weren't genuine. Their response was something we should all remember: We're Cahuilla, and we made these rattles. Therefore, they are genuine Cahuilla rattles. The fact that they don't look like the ones in the museums from a century ago does not mean that they are not genuine. It simply means that collectors are imposing a false standard on our art. (this is a paraphrase). I'm personally skeptical about the purported age of this piece, but unless it was made by a non-Tlingit, it's a genuine Tlingit knife. Until we know who made it, we might want to be more, ahem, nuanced in our use of genuine vs. reproduction. F