ticketsMember | Make a donation

War helmet

ca. 1750–1800
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Tlingit war helmets had carved spirit, ancestor, or clan crest figures that spiritually protected and empowered warriors. The carving on this example represents the red-breasted merganser, a swift and aggressive water bird. The wings of the merganser are executed in a broad formline design that wraps around the sides, sculpted as a subtle protrusion from the essential helmet shape. The pegged-in human hair extends and exaggerates the bird’s crest, lending the work a sense of animation.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: War helmet
  • Artist: Unrecorded Tlingit artist
  • Date: ca. 1750–1800
  • Geography: United States, Southeast Alaska
  • Culture: Tlingit
  • Medium: Wood, copper, paint, human hair, opercula, leather, twine
  • Dimensions: H. 11 1/2 × W. 11 1/4 × D. 10 1/2 in. (29.2 × 28.6 × 26.7 cm)
  • Classification: Wood-Costumes
  • Credit Line: Thaw Collection of American Indian Art, Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, NY
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing