Northwest Coast Polychromed Wood Headdress, possibly Haida

frontlet, of slightly convex rectangular form, finely carved in the form of a totemic bird, with forward curving wings, flanking a small upside down face, wearing a grimacing expression and upswept coiffure, a pair of projecting feet, broad slightly parted beak, hollowed pointed oval eye frames, and thick arching brows, enclosed on three sides by flat, tapering panels, decorated with black and vermilion red pigments, and plaques of hand cut abalone shell on the feet and pupils.

Good overall condition. There was a clean break on the right side of the frontlet that ran vertically from top to bottom that has been glued with the original two parts. A series of small chips to the periphery, the coiffure of the small upside down shaman, and to the end of the beak. A broader section of the beak may have broken and been re-glued with original parts. All stable.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

For a closely related example identified as Haida and collected in the Prince of Wales Islands, British Columbia, circa 1850, see 10/4581 in the National Museum of the American Indian.

For a discussion on frontlets see Holm, 1983, p. 19: "From the farthest northwestern reach of Tlingit country at Yakutat Bay, southward along the coast to the middle of Vancouver Island, dancing chiefs wore crowns as elegant as rich material and sculp­tor's skill could make. Traditions of the tribes assign various places of origin to the dancing head­dress, but, whichever is correct, it must have been somewhere in the north...The features of the headdress are the same wherever it is worn: a cylindrical frame - often made of strips of whale baleen and covered with cloth - from the back of which hangs a long panel covered with rows of white ermine skins; an upstanding circlet of the long, springy whiskers of the Steller's sea lion; and a spectacular plaque carved of hardwood, painted and inlaid with abalone shell on the fore­head. This plaque, or frontlet, is carved to represent a crest or a mythical character. The figure in the center is surrounded by a flange that is usually cov­ered with inset plates of brilliantly iridescent aba­lone shell. Inlays of the same shell flash from the eyes, teeth, and joints. Sumptuous materials sur­round the intricate plaque. Often the crown is cov­ered with a band of swan skin, luxuriant with white down, or ermines flank the frontlet. On Haida and Tlingit headdresses the plaque is often framed by rows of orange and black, spear-shaped tail feathers of the red-shafted flicker, with a band of iridescent green and black mallard head-skin across the forehead."