This is a rare and very old Haida painted Spruce Root hat fragment. It was professionally framed some decades ago.
This is a very old specimen (19th century); a museum quality piece.
***This piece ie Ex Phil Nuytten (b.1941 - 2023) -- Canadian deep ocean explorer and inventor. The collection inventory numbers are on the back of the frame.
Genuine 19th c Haida Spruce root hats are very rare and expensive ($20,000 - $30,000). This fragment is an important historic Northwest Coast item.
"Spruce root weaving is one of those arts in which the gathering and preparation of materials consumes more time than the weaving of the final product. Long, branchless roots must be found and dug, preferably in sandy soil for ease of extraction. The best small roots are then heated over a fire to soften the bark and drawn through a split stick to remove it. Once seasoned and dry, the roots are laboriously split through their length more than once, to preserve the smooth outer surface and remove the fibrous interior. All this can take weeks to prepare enough prime material for the weaving of a hat or basket.
Among northern Northwest Coast groups, three types of twining are employed in this style of hat; two strand over single warps in the upper area, or crown; one row of three strand to mark the transition from crown to brim, and two strand over single warps combined with what is often called ‘skip stitch’, or self-patterned twining. The latter creates geometric patterns on the surface, in this case zig-zag lines that extend out to the brim. Other examples exhibit diamond shapes in the skip-stitch on the brim. Hats in this shape are traditionally woven in these patterns, as were earlier hats with a lower, more conical shape. In the 18th century, the smooth surface of the crown was reserved for painted designs, which did not extend into the region of skip-stitch patterns. By the late 18th and early 19th century, painted designs had begun to extend out to the brim, often covering the entire surface of the hat. This taller shape and more extensive painted" (Sotheby's).
Measurements:
Size of frame 22 inches x 19 inches; size of hat fragment 17 x 13 inches.
*** cost of shipping this item is more than $100 if you live outside of North America. Please inquire before you purchase.