NELSON] FINGER MASKS 413 



pierced by a doubly rounded hole for the insertion of two lingers. It is 

 surrounded by a groove in which is set a strip of deerskin with the long 

 hair upstanding and with a quill tipped with downy feathers extending 

 out over each side and up from the top. On one side of figure 4 is a 

 grotesque semihuman face, with the month commencing as a down- 

 turned corner on the right side, thence extending over and down on 

 the other side, then sweeping up around the left border of the face and 

 forehead. The eye upon the left side is absent; upon the right side is 

 a crescentic eye with corners down-turned, and the nose is curved 

 around toward the right. In the other example (figure 3) the block 

 is surrounded near its border by a ridge from which a narrow bevel 

 extends outward to the edge and another one inward to the border of 

 a lace in relief which occupies the middle. This face has no nose, but 

 has the two cresceutic eyes inclined downward toward the center and 

 a crescentic mouth with down-turned corners cut into the block. This 

 is used in ceremonial dances, as are other objects of this kind. The 

 distorted countenance of the mask shown in figure 4 represents the 

 supposed features of a tunghtik. 



Figure 1, plate oiv, from Norton sound, is a rounded, flattened disk, 

 5 inches long by 2^ broad, with the center removed, forming a ring and 

 connected below by a short neck to an enlarged ring-like appendage 

 for the insertion of two fingers. The hole through the center is nearly 

 an inch and a half in diameter and is crossed by two small strips of 

 wood. On each face of the disk, or ring, just inside the border, is a 

 shallow groove. Along another groove, around the outer edge of the 

 ring, are inserted five long, downy feathers. This specimen was col 

 lected by Mr L. M. Turner, who states that it was intended to represent 

 a star, the feathers indicating the twinkling of the light. This finger 

 mask was used by women in certain ceremonial dances. 



Figure 1, plate cv, from Big lake, between Yukon and Kuskokwim 

 rivers, is a ring 4i inches in diameter inclosing a second ring a little 

 over 2 inches in diameter, which is attached to the outer one by two 

 projections on opposite sides. On the lower side is a rounded projec 

 tion about an inch in length and two inches broad, through which 

 are pierced holes for the insertion of two fingers. Each one of the 

 wooden rings is grooved entirely around the middle, and the outer one 

 is beveled on the inner half toward the center, while the inner one is 

 beveled both ways from the middle. The outer ring has its border 

 white, and is black, with white spots, on the beveled inner half. The 

 inner ring has its outer portion white, with black spots, the inner por 

 tion being red, with white spots. Surrounding the border is a strip of 

 deerskin with upstanding hair, and five tail-feathers of the old-squaw 

 duck tipped with downy plumes. This mask also is used by women in 

 ceremonial dances, but its signification is unknown. 



Figure 3, plate cv, from Pastolik, is 4f by 2f inches. It is a rudely 

 carved wooden block, roughly pear-shape in outline, with a curiously 



