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A Dangerous Thing 1914

August 22nd, 2008 @ 1:45 am by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposureborder
There’s been a lot of talk about Bigfoot lately (he was hanging around in Georgia (and more recently in a freezer). But who is looking for Bighands? Well, this was actually a Koskimo person dressed up as Hami (”dangerous thing”) during the numhlim ceremony, captured by famous Seattle photographer Edward Curtis in 1914. Curtis was known to stage shots, but he usually didn’t include possum. Click on the thumbnail to view the full photo.
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Koskimo person wearing full-body fur garment, oversized gloves and mask of Hami (”dangerous thing”) during the numhlim ceremony. Edward S. Curtis Collection. November 13, 1914. Image courtesy Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

2 Responses:

  1. Calandra wrote:

    What a great photo! I work at the Seattle Art Museum, and we’ll be opening a Pacific Coast Salish Art show in October that features a number of Curtis’ images. If you enjoy this one, you should really come check it out!

  2. Cliffe wrote:

    Cool, thanks for the tip. I’ve been meaning to make my way over there for a while.

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