354 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 191 



mation on the technical processes of carving, the sources of formal 

 characteristics, and the role of the individual in devising new forms. 

 Although his most recent paper on masking presents some data on 

 these topics, much is as yet unpublished. 



My study differs from previous investigations both in scope and 

 intention, as it is limited to an examination of mask carving on one 

 Iroquois reservation. The Onondaga Reservation was chosen be- 

 cause of its accessibility, and I began work with the assumption, 

 derived from the literature, that masks, insofar as they were still 

 made and used by the modern Iroquois, continued to serve the same 

 function and carry the same meaning as they had in the past. 



Once I was in the field, however, the problem to be investigated 

 became more structured. Onondaga is situated on the outskirts of 

 Syracuse and is a highly acculturated community. Subjected to 

 continuous pressure from Western society for more than 300 years, 

 these Indians have lost many of their aboriginal customs and have 

 assimilated the technology and, in part, the social organization and 

 values of the dominant culture. In view of the widespread changes 

 which have occurred, two questions may be posed. What factors 

 account for the persistence of a traditional art in an acculturated 

 society? How have the changes which have taken place in the society 

 as a whole been reflected in the art — in its function, its meaning, and 

 its style? The answers to these questions are sought in an analysis of 

 mask carving in relation to its present sociocultural context. 



Some limitations on conclusions which can be drawn from the data 

 are imposed by the nature of the problem and the lack of adequate 

 tools to cope with it. Artists are often unable, even when they are 

 wiUing, to verbaUze their conceptions of art, since many of their 

 mental processes take place below the level of consciousness (Bunzel, 

 1929; Boas, 1955, p. 155). As yet no specific techniques for over- 

 coming this difl&culty have been developed, so that full insight into 

 such problems as the motivation of the artist, the way in which he 

 develops or acquires his skill, and the particular kind of satisfactions 

 which he derives from his work remains beyond the scope of the 

 ethnographer. 



The conditions under which I did fieldwork constitute another 

 factor which must be taken into consideration. I was on the reser- 

 vation for a little less than 2 months, a period of time insufficient 

 for me to become known and accepted by the community. Many of 

 the Onondagas are suspicious and somewhat hostile toward outsiders, 

 and the fact that I was a woman who was attempting to investigate 

 a man's art did not improve my position. All my informants seemed 

 to find it strange and a little unseemly that a woman should be inter- 

 ested in woodcarving, which is undoubtedly one of the reasons why 



