Chiefs and high-ranking individuals in communities along the northern British Columbia Coast commissioned raven rattles for use in ceremonies and celebrations to heighten song and oratory. Carved from a single piece of wood, the rattles fit a common compositional structure within which artists created their unique variation. Protruding its head outward, the raven holds a small object in its beak, likely in reference to the story of the Raven who brought sunlight into the world. A shaman seated behind the Raven is extending his tongue towards a mythical bird tosuggest the passage of knowledge between the human and animal world. The face below is Konankada or Gonankadet, Chief of the Undersea.

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