The Sheldon Jackson Museum May artifacts of the month are a selection of four Northwest Coast silver spoons engraved with bird designs (SJ-2024-4-5, SJ-2024-4-3-1, SJ-2024-3-2, SJ-2009-3-1). Three of the spoons were generously donated to the museum in 2024 by Kenneth Marchant. One was gifted to the museum by former Sheldon Jackson Museum curator Peter Corey in 2009. All the spoons date to the late 19th century, have some formline or formline-like details, and were likely made for sale in the curio trade market.
While we cannot be certain which bird species are represented in each of the spoons, they may include a crane or heron and ravens. The spoon showing a bird head in profile likely depicts a raven in its bowl. While ravens, a crest, were often engraved in silver spoons and bracelets for the tourist trade, other locally found birds were also depicted.
Unfortunately we don't know the spoon makers, with the exception of the smallest spoon with a salmon engraved in its bowl (fourth from the left in photo). The famous Tlingit silversmith of Sitka, Rudolph Walton, likely made this one. It has a crisp, light carving quality typical of Walton, with small design elements and few connected areas. The spare formline engraved in the handle includes an ovoid eye in the bird’s head. An elongated, split u-form in the handle is clearly defined, sharp and tight. The word “Sitka,” in Walton’s cursive writing, is very distinct on the backside of the bowl and can be found in many of his carvings. Walton frequently separated the letter “a” from the other letters when he engraved the word “Sitka.” The year 1897 is below the inscription of Sitka.
Although we haven't yet identified who made the other spoons, the Sheldon Jackson Museum’s spoon collection attracts visiting scholars and silver enthusiasts who may have insights in the future. The museum has one of the most significant Northwest Coast silver collections in the state and includes close to 130 silver spoons from the late 19th century as well as over two dozen silver bracelets.
You can see the May artifacts of the month and other examples of Northwest Coast silver at the museum. The Sheldon Jackson Museum is currently open Monday-Friday, 9 am-4:30 pm. General admission is $9, $8 for seniors, and free for ages 18 and under and for active military and their families.
Hall, June E. Alaska Souvenir Spoons & Early Curio Trade. Gastineau Channel Historical Society, Juneau, AK. 2004
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