Crystal, wrapper, and thong

Museum number:

1-157497a-c

Permalink:

ark:/21549/hm2101157497a@2dc

Accession number:

Acc.2036

Description:

(a) Quartz crystal. (b) Buckskin wrapper. (c) Buckskin thong tie decorated with 4 clam shell disc beads.

Donor:

David Wayne Peri

Collection place:

Bodega Bay, Sonoma County, California

Verbatim coll. place:

California; Northern California; Bodega Bay

Culture or time period:

Coast Miwok

Collector:

David Wayne Peri and Oscar Bassen

Collection date:

ca. 1950

Materials:

Magnesite

Taxon:

Odocoileus

Object type:

ethnography

Function:

5.2 Magic: Objects Associated with Practices reflecting confidence in the ability to manipulate supernatural agencies

Accession date:

1965

Context of use:

Used to cure and to poison. Used for severe illness only e.g. woman attending doctoring ceremony while menstruating; doctor who has not abstained from intercourse 4 days before or after ceremony, thus breaking taboos and causing illness.

Department:

Native California (archaeology and ethnology)

Dimensions:

(c)— length 118 centimeters, (a)— length 19 centimeters, and (b)— length 56 centimeters

Comment:

All participants including doctor and patient must be painted with traditional designs of dots or slashes on face only. 4 horizontal lines on forehead (using 2 fingers from each hand to apply lines), 2 vertical lines on each cheek, 2 lines on chin. Anyone handling crystal must have hands painted with ocher or doctor's blood; crystal painted on all faces with ocher. Procedure is as follows: 1) paint both hands; 2) paint crystal; 3) holding crystal with both hands, address power of crystal in first person (crystal is repository of dormant power) and bash crystal against rock. For deer sickness crystal laid on top of pepperwood (California laurel) boughs, etc.; in cases of poisoning crystal is set in sand upright (in mound with 4 concentric circles drawn in ocher); 4) doctor talks, then sings: first talks to singers, if present, then tells audience how powerful crystal is, then talks to patient about crystal's power and how to behave during ceremony; 5) doctor sings and while he is singing audience throws clamshell beads, magnesite beads, deerskins, blades, anything of value towards him. While audience throws offerings, he batters crystal; if crystal splits, doctor and patient will die immediately, audience will become sick, for something has gone wrong. There will be a big flash, noise, power goes out through smokehouse hole. Crystal should be ritually destroyed if doctor dies and crystal not buried with him or cannot be passed on to his brother's son, sister's son, or his grandson (in that order), but not his own son or brother. To ritually destroy, put it in a fork of tree with point facing away from habitations; a young child, holding a large, bell-shaped mortar, strikes crystal to release power. 1-157472-157500 and 157713-16 comprise outfit of Thomas Smith; outfit was family heirloom.

Legacy documentation: