Title

Indian notes v.5

Contributor

Corporation de la Maison Dumulon (sharing)

Creator

Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian

Language

eng

Spatial Coverage

Kitigan Zibi

Pikwakanagan

Description

The volume includes, on page 167, an article by Frank G. Speck titled "Divination by Scapulimancy Among the Algonquin of River Desert, Quebec." Its author describes the practice of scapulimancy in the Kitigan Zibi community, as explained to him by the wife of Chief Michel Buckshot.

Scapulimancy involves telling someone's fortune by reading the cracks and burns that appear on an animal's shoulder blade after it has been left on hot coals. For the woman interviewed by Speck, it is essential to perform the ritual alone to avoid any disturbance. Members of her community refer scapulimancy by using the words "kwasabendjigan" ("clairvoyance"), "masinagesige" ("writing"), or "andoganasige" ("foretelling").

Immediately following, on page 173, is an article by Frederick Johnson titled "The Algonquin at Golden Lake, Ontario." It contains a general overview of the Pikwakanagan community, which at that time had 164 members.

Johnson recalls that families in the community had already been using Pikwakanagan as a summer base for "several centuries." He notes that their proximity to the "Nottawe" (Haudenosaunee) influenced their crafts: "the baby carriers and some ash baskets closely resemble those found among the Iroquois."

Format

Text

Caractéristiques du format

512 pages

Matériaux

Paper

Date Created

1928

Transmission

Kawanok

Access Rights

Open access

License

Public domain

Date Modified

2025-06-04

Identifier

smithsonian-texte-003

Source

Smithsonian Libraries