Preserving and Using Resources BCFNS 12 Chapter 2 Ms. Inden

Drying A Tahltan lodge for smoking Some items were dried by the air in places where the air is dry and warm (Fraser Valley) Some were partially dried, others thoroughly dried Tahltan lodge for smoking salmon, Salmon Creek, c Source: Boas Anniversary Volume (1906)

Storing food People on the Coast stored food in bentwood boxes beneath the floor and around the edges of the longhouses In the interior, food was also stored in pits in the ground

Storing Food Food caches kept the food high off the ground in the Interior This is an example of a cache the Tahltan used in the Stikine area Sometimes a cache was just a bag hung high up in a tree

Animal Hides Before the hide is tanned, it is called raw hide –This is good for cord and drums

Animal Hides Tanned hide is used for footwear, clothing and also for shelters like tipis –The method is complex and required great skill Skin animal, scrape hair and fat off Must know the chemical processes Timing of each stage is important

Textiles – cloth and clothing Plant fibres are woven to make clothing, mats for the floor, twine, rope, and baskets Twine and rope was used to make traps or nets for fishing and hunting Strong fibres were taken from the stems and used to make twine Indian Hemp - Interior Stinging Nettle - Coast

More on Textiles Baskets were also woven from cedar bark, spruce roots, reeds or grasses Some were used to carry water or liquids and had to be woven very, very tightly and sometimes sealed by resin Others were made loosely, to allow water to flow out

Birch Bark Basket In many areas of the Province of BC, birch bark baskets are common Birch barks is chosen because it is water proof and does not easily rot (rot-resistant) Baskets are sewn together by spruce roots Water tight baskets! A difficult skill to learn!

An useful object, but also valued as art! Almost always carried out by women Baskets were useful, and beautiful Fine textiles (fabric) was used to create ceremonial robes, robes that showed high social status or great power ach/galler07/frames/int_peop.htm

Dog and Mountain Goat hair Coast Salish women raised a breed of dog especially for its hair, which was made into thread and woven into cloth Mountain Goat wool was also used in blankets, but only for very special occasions as it was rare hanindiansweaters.html

Cedar and wool together Chilkat Blanket Collected from the Haida (wool and cedar bark trimmed with other fur; yellow, black, blue, white), pre-1870 (courtesy UBC Museum of Anthropology).

Tools and Household Goods People were responsible for making the tools they would need for their tasks While the hide of a moose was tanned, the sinew was made into thread, the stomach into a bag, and the meat eaten, bones would be made into knives and scrapers, awls and needles for sewing

Most important tool: Bow and Arrows A hunter must understand the properties of wood and stone to make bows and arrow heads – a sophisticated skill However, if it isn’t learned well, the hunt won’t go well