PAINT - CUP / MORTAR, MIWOK; MARIN COUNTY REGION, 19th Century CALIFORNIA
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:27572785 | Color: Brown |
| Material: Stone | Style: Native American |
| Original/Reproduction: Original | Maker: Prehistoric indigenous people of Point Reyes |
PAINT-CUP / MORTAR, MIWOK; MARIN COUNTY REGION, 19thCentury CALIFORNIAPaint-CupMortarHeight: 1”Length: 4 ¼”Width: 3 ¼”Rim-Diameter: 1¼’Depression: ¾”Weight: 13.4ozPestleLength: 2½”Mid-Diameter: 11/8”Weight: 10.7 ozAnotherintriguing paint cup mortar from Point Reyes, California. This specimen, however, was carved from aFOSSILIZED WHALEBONE VERTEBRAE!PointReyes, a prominent,... windswept cape about 30 miles northwest of San Francisco, has long been a gathering point for the early CHUMASH. Offshore, to this day marine life isABUNDANT.TheCalifornia gray whale swims over 10, 000 miles each year migrating from thecold, nutrient-rich waters of Alaska to the warm lagoons of BajaCalifornia. Along the way, these massivecreatures pass by Point Reyes.Overthe years, very old remains of these mammals get washed ashore and embeddedwithin the sandy cliffsides of the Point.Thelisted paint cup is an astonishing, fossilized GRAY WHALE VERTEBRAE by an earlynative American this object no doubt attracted attention due to itsconcentration of ancient seaworms and shells attached to it (see photos).Theartifact’s center part has been scooped out to make a paint-holedepression. The natural edges of thevertebrae form the boundaries of this RARE piece. Over the years, various artifact/fossils havebeen found at Point Reyes, giving the impression that the MIWOK people soughtout these precious pieces to incorporate them into their spiritual ceremonies.TheMiwok Native Americans were a California tribe who hunted/gathered andfished. They lived in north-central California from the Pacificcoast to the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.Thefirst observation of these people by Spanish explorers to the Point Reyes region(of what is now western Marin County) were the face and body paint covering thenatives. Applied in horizontal lines colors were obtained fromcharcoal and chalk deposits.Tatooingwas also a significant feature.Oneof their receptacles for these pigments is listed here. The MIWOK would insert their fingers/pestleinto the pigment hole and proceed to paint their faces/bodies.Themortar cup, as mentioned above, from a prehistoric coral was uncovered in the19the century by an early, inland land owner (fossils happened to be ratherprevalent in the area. According to family lore, it was accompaniedby a long, rod stone pestle which is listed here. It wasin the family’s possession until this site acquired it and several other, reworked fossil mortars. It is listed herefor the first time.Partsof the prehistoric vertebra sections can still be seen.Chinks, dings, minor cuts.Todaythere are FEDERAL LAWS against ANY collection of anything along this National Seashore. The object listed was collected well before any overriding laws wereattached to this region. DO NOT PICK UP/ REMOVE any item!Takeonly pictures, leave only footprints.
