Mohawks win injunction

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Mask removed from view

A court here has ordered the Glenbow Museum to remove from its Spirit Sings display a false face mask considered sacred by Mohawk Indians.

The ruling follows an injunction filed by the Mohawks on Thursday, Jan. 14, stating that the exhibition of the mask violates the intended purposes of the mask and its sacred functions.

"It (the mask) does not belong here. It is not meant to be desecrated," said Chief Billy Two Rivers of the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake. "What we are demanding is the return of the false face and other spiritual artifacts that are in this display."

The Mohawks contend the mask, one of 38 items loaned to the Glenbow from the Royal Ontario Museum, has spiritual value and belongs to their spiritual leaders.

"Even our people have limited access to them," said Chief Joseph Norton, also of the Mohawks of Kahnawake, a reserve just outside Montreal.

"The false face is limited to its use in specific ceremonies that are appointed throughout the year," said Norton. "Only then are they used by the people who have responsibility for it. Other than that, no one else is supposed to see it, no one else is supposed to use it for their own pleasure."

Even the catalogue description of exhibits, produced by the museum for the Spirit Sings exhibition, attests to the sacredness of the mask: "Within the medicine society, the mask represented spirits commanded by the Creator to lend healing power to human beings. Because of its sacred connotation, only members within the society are allowed to look at the mask."

While Glenbow spokespeople would not comment on the sacredness of specific artifacts, they did say great effort was made to ensure none of the displayed artifacts would offend Natives.

But, one of the Spirit Sings guest curators, Martine Reid, an anthropologist specializing in northwest coast people, said sacred articles caused her some concern.

"This (the display of sacred artefacts) has happened many times in British Columbia," said Reid. Because her husband is a Haida, Reid says she can understand the Mohawk's concern. The painted wooden mask has brass metal inserts around the eyes, animal teeth, a crooked nose and a large grin. It has now been ordered removed until the hearing scheduled for Jan. 28.

"We're pretty well satisfied with the outcome," said Norton. "It's obvious that the strength in the spirit of the false face is on our side in this particular case."

Should the Mohawks win their case for the return of the mask and several other items, now on display at the Spirit Sings, the Glenbow Museum may be making future trips to the courthouse.

The Micmac tribe, from Conne River, Newfoundland has said they may seek court action against the museum to retrieve a canoe in its display.