Museum Exposition of California Indian Life
In addition to the references to illustrations given in this paper,
the Museum of Anthropology of the University of California has a large
number of photographs from the tribes concerned which furnish ample data
on most topics.
A museum representation of Indians at Sequoia park faces several
complicating factors, but has, at the same time, the opportunity to tell
a story of unusual interest. If only the Western Mono and Tubatulabal,
who are natives to the park, were represented, we should be able to
expound a more or less typical Californian but in general rather
backward people and we should probably have to be content with a limited
number and variety of museum specimens. If, however, the tribes to the
east and west are given consideration, we have the opportunity to
elucidate facts of the utmost importance and interest.
The Sierra Nevada range forms a sharp division between two native
American cultural and geographical provinces. To the east lies the arid
Great Basin, harboring the primitive Shoshonean-speaking tribes, who in
their struggle, to live in an extremely inhospitable environment, were
equipped with only the moat primitive cultural devices, and who, by
virtue of their backwardness, are closer than almost any other tribes in
America to the first Indians of 20,000 or 25,000 years ago. Specific
traits, of course, such as the bow, dog, metate, rabbit skin blanket,
and basketry are advanced, but in general their culture is impoverished
as compared with any other American Indians. To the west of the Sierra
Nevada lies the California province, affording a greater natural
abundance of food and supporting cultures which, though primitive as
compared with the agricultural tribes of the Southwest, or salmon
fishing peoples of the Northwest Coast, had achieved their own special
solutions of the problem of living, and had built up something of a
distinctive social and religious culture. The Owens Valley Paiute
largely typify the Great Basin tribes; the Yokuts possess most of the
distinctive traits of the California tribes. The Western Mono and
Tubatulabal are in large measure intermediate in development, leaning
somewhat toward California. A museum exposition of these cultural
provinces, therefore, should bring out the following facts:
First, the Sierra Nevada mountains constitute a major barrier between
the two geographical and cultural provinces. In order to indicate this
forcibly, a map including the full extent of the Great Basin into Utah,
and of the whole of California should be used. On this would be entered
the major cultural and geographical areas. Attention should also be
called to the relief model constructed for Sequoia Park, for it
indicates the magnitude of the crest of the Sierra as a geographical and
cultural barrier.
Second, a map should show the distribution of tribes in the region,
indicating also the major language groups. This would bring out the fact
that the Sierras constitute, in large measure, a boundary between the
Shoshonean-speaking Great Basin peoples and the varied linguistic groups
of the California province. Such a map would be of local interest and
certainly far more important than a general map of North American
Linguistic families. It would show that to the east of the Sierra lie
the Shoshonean speaking Northern Paiute (Paviotso), Shoshoni, Southern
Paiute, and Chemehuevi, while the Western Mono, Tubatulabal and
Kawaiisu, also Shoshonean-speaking, are in the mountains; and it would
show that California proper is occupied by several stocks. One of the
most important of these is the Penutian-Lutuamian, which includes the
centrally located Yokuts, Salinan, Miwok, Maidu and Wintun. Another is
the Hokan-Siouan, which includes the Costonoan, Shastan, Chumash and
Pomo. (See Kroeber, 1925, pl. 1 for further details.)
Third, the cultural differences between the peoples on the opposite
sides of the Sierras should be brought out. Exposition of these
differences would first emphasize the fact that the natural basis of
life in the two provinces is different. In California wild foods were
relatively abundant and sufficed to support a large population, in the
absence of agriculture. No one food, however, formed the hub of economic
activities as did the bison in the Plains, the salmon on the Northwest
Coast, maize in the Southwest. Instead, everything was utilized, all
kinds of game being taken in a variety of ways, and all edible seeds
being gathered and roots dug. The relatively great reliance upon roots
has merited the California Indians generally the popular but entirely
meaningless name, "Diggers". If any one thing served as a specialized
food and required specialized techniques, it was the acorn, which became
the center of a very interesting complex. In contrast to the relative
abundance of food in California, the Great Basin afforded so little that
life was a continual struggle. As in California, everything possible was
utilized, but the pine nut, growing on the desert ranges, supplanted the
acorn as the staple food and required its own series of techniques for
gathering, storing, and preparation. These and other differences between
the two provinces will be explained below. In a museum exposition of
these points, there should be, so far as possible, a comparative series
of illustrations or actual objects of the two cultures.
In this connection, a map should show the cultural sub-areas of
California (see Kroeber, 1925, figs. 73 and 74, pp. 903, 916.), making
it plain that the Yokuts-Western Mono culture belongs with the south
central area, which is set off from the Northwest salmon culture (which
is allied with the Northwest Coast), and the southern California
sub-area which is somewhat distinctive, somewhat allied with the
Southwest. The museum should also explain the interesting fact that as
California is extremely varied topographically and in natural resources,
so its native inhabitants had more than ordinarily varied arts and
industries, quite different modes of life being found within a
relatively small region.
A fourth point that should be brought out is that native trade was
carried on across the Sierra Nevada, definite trails being used and a
considerable variety of objects being transported. Trails, campsites,
etc., could be designated on maps. Such information as is available on
this subject will be indicated below.
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