Items

Explore individual items gathered for collections and exhibits centered around particular themes, people, places, or events.

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  Treasure Box (wakahuia)

  This object was created to hold the feathers of the huia bird which is now extinct. This object also stored other personal items and is a cherished object in Maori culture. The object has carved male and female ancestral figures.
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  Hei Tiki made by Maori Artist

  This object was made by a Maori artist during the late 19th to early 20th century. This object is made out of Nephrite and was in Morton D. May's collection until it became apart of the Saint Louis Art Museum's collection.
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  War Canoe Sternpost (taurapa)

  When Maori artists made this object they had to adhere to a standard composition. This object has two "manaia" the first one is a beaked figure representing a guardian spirit and the other is directly below the first "manaia." When canoes were not in use this object would be removed and stored.
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  Bird Snare or Perch (mutu kaka)

  This object was used as a bird trap and Maori hunters would install these objects near certain trees. Maori hunters would connect a cord to the object that could be activated from a distance, and when the cord was pulled the bird would be captured by its feet without damaging the bird's feathers because certain feathers from birds were highly valued items.
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  Mayan Column with Hieroglyphs

  The carvings in this object are Mayan Hieroglyphs which is a writing system that mixes phonetic signs with pictorial representations. The texts begin in the upper left moving to the right and top to bottom in double columns. The first nine hieroglyphs on the object record the date of different Mayan calendars.
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  Mayan Vessel with Carved Motifs

  This object has two panels that depict supernatural creatures related to Mayan creation narratives. Mayan rulers and nobles sought to create alignments between themselves and religious narrative events. The motifs carved on the objects depict a water serpent that was pierced by a spear and a disembodied head.
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  Mayan Ballgame Vessel

  The painting on this object depicts the story of a ballgame that unfolds in sections when examined. The hieroglyphs on the object are rendered loosely meaning that the scribe was emulating the speed of the game.
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  Incense Burner

  Ceramic manufacturing and militarism are the components of Teotihuacan ideas that are reflected in this object. The individual aspects of this object have a specific meaning and when these aspects are integrated a greater whole is created. For example, the flowers on the top of the object refer to the city and the butterflies in the middle of the object represent the spirit of a deceased warrior.
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  Brazier in the Form of the Old God

  The object depicts the character known as Huehueteotl or the Old God. The object was carved from igneous rock and many objects like this one were found. The basin at the top of the object's head may have been used for keeping coals or incense hot and in Teotihuacan society the Old God was important to all members.
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  Architectural Fragment

  This object has a face carved with two holes for the eyes and one hole for the mouth. This object was carved easily and the minimal treatment of the carved object suggests a deliberate and specific representation. The identity of the mask is a mystery and scholars say that this object is known as the Mask God.
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  Copper Object made by Haida, Tlingit, Tsimshian Artists

  This object was created using a blackened surface with a fine point tool, and indigenous groups in the Northwest Coast made copper for display. These objects circulated between rival and allied indigenous groups and the value of these copper objects increased as they changed hands. This object's accumulation of imagery most likely relates to a long history of exchange between different Indigenous groups.
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  Bowl made by Tlingit Artist Augustus Bean (1856-1926)

  This figure was made by a Tlingit artist named Augustus Bean (K'alyaan Eesch)(1856-1926). This bowl uses elements of historic carving styles such as shell inlay and shallow engraving.
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  Vessel with Painted Motifs

  This object is attributed to the Soyapango culture and is a ceramic bowel that is painted with various motifs. This object is not on view at the Saint Louis Art Museum Galleries.
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  Cylinder Seal

  This object was produced during the Middle Formative period and is attributed to the Olmec culture. This object is made out of ceramics and is currently on display at the Saint Louis Art Museum.
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  Avian Mace Head

  There is not a lot of information on this object in the Saint Louis Art Museum online collections. This object originated in Costa Rica, North and Central America and is made out of stone. The object is classified as arms and armor and is currently not on view in the Saint Louis Art Museum galleries.
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  Fragment of an Architectural Frieze

  This object was produced in the late classic period from 600 to 909. The figure is made out of terracotta and is classified as an architectural element and is currently on view at the Saint Louis Art Museum.
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  Vessel in the Form of a Coyote

  This figure is known as a "plumbable" because of its resemblance to lead. This object was made for a brief period of time and was distributed across ancient Mesoamerica, and these figure was a key object that defined the Early Postclassic Period. The iconography on this figure is restrictive, and the iconography of this figure suggests a tradition of hunting and captivity.
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  Figure (akua ka'ai) made by Hawaiian Artist

  This figure is called a divinity sculpture and these figures were placed in ceremonial enclosures. This figure is also referred to as "god sticks" and this figure along with other figures would have been placed on alters, planted into the earth, or located on walls inside of temples. The design of this figure is a characteristic of Polynesian culture and it achieves a successful expression in Hawaiian art.
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  Male Yipwon Figure made by Alamblak or Inyai-Ewa Artists

  This object was kept by men in the Alamblak region in sacred houses in order to contact their ancestors for help in warfare, hunting, or other problems. This object was created in one of the fifteen villages and was found in the early 1950s near the hilltops of the Korewori River. The object was carved using modern steel tools but it is still a product of the Alamblak people's cultural heritage.
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  Gope Board made by Kerewa Artist

  This Gope Board was made by a Kerewa artist in the twentieth century and this item originated from the Gulf Province in Papua New Guinea. The object is made out of wood, Indigenous paint, red lead, and lime.
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  Female Figure made by Inyai-Ewa Artist

  This object was created through a collaboration between an hunter who envisioned the figure in a dream and a sculptor who was commissioned to create the sculpture. Objects such as this female figure were considered guardians of the game and hunt and played an important role in rituals conducted before hunting expeditions.
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  Cooking Pot made by Boiken Artist

  This Item is a cooking pot that was made by a Boiken artist in Papua New Guinea. This item is made out of a ceramic material and was previously owned by Morton D. May before it became part of the Saint Louis Art Museum collection.
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  Canoe Shield

  This object was used during ceremonies related to war or fertility and the term used to describe the object is an ambiguous term. This object did not physically protect the occupants of the canoe, but the object endowed them with the power of the ancestor represented, and when the object was not used the object would have been affixed to a ceremonial house beside paddles.
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  Armband made by Aitape Artist

  This object circulated throughout the Sepik River Valley in Papua New Guinea. Men would wear the armbands on their arms in the Papua New Guinea coast. In the Middle Sepik Region the armbands were attached to the back of large ancestor masks for dancing, and armbands could be exchanged or given to others as a sign of friendship.
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  Spirit Board (gope) made by Wapo Creek Artist

  This figure is one example of the spirit boards that originated from the Papuan Gulf. The differences of these spirit boards correspond to a specific spirit and reveal a range of regional styles. Each spirit board belongs to its own clan which are then installed in men's ceremonial house that display the most sacred clan objects.