Beaver-shaped market bowl, Tlingit?

Overview

Cleveland dates this wooden beaver-shaped bowl to about 1890–1920 and tentatively attributes it to Tlingit makers in Alaska. The carved animal surrounds an open hollow; its broad tail has a crosshatched surface.

Cleveland treats this example as outside-market carving, relating such production to colonial changes in Indigenous economies. Provenance names Barry Bradley’s estate; the maker and earlier owners are unrecorded.

History & identity

Maker unrecorded.

Sources & representation

Institutional object account.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Cleveland Museum of Art online catalogue: Beaver-Shaped Bowl (2009.434)

   Cleveland Museum of Art

   Undated online publication; manufacture date and record timestamps are separate.

Language & cultural connections

Source-supported language and cultural connections have not yet been compiled for this profile.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. Primary institutional object recordBeaver-Shaped Bowl — Cleveland Museum of Art 2009.434Research access: 2026-10-21

Image credits

AI-generated object interpretation.