Object Story: Oval Bowl

The swirled, highly figured grain of this ash wood bowl comes from burls, abnormal growths in a tree’s wood. Not only do burls create a natural pattern but the irregular shape of the grain makes burl wood objects sturdier than other types of wood. Burls form on the outside of old trees and are easier to find in North America than in Europe because most of Europe’s forests have been logged. Because of this, objects made of burl wood are rare and expensive in Europe but much more common in America. Since this bowl was made by hand instead of on a lathe, researchers think it was probably made by a Native American artisan. Native Americans often used hot coals to slowly hollow out the inside of the bowl, in a labor-intensive process that was also used to make log canoes. Burl bowls were long in use prior to the arrival of Europeans and were sometimes used in ceremonial feasting vessels. Here, two rectangular handles are cut into the sweeping sides of the bowl and a circular foot has been carved in the bottom, showing the stylistic influence of European vessels and suggesting that this bowl may have been made for a colonial audience.

Questions for Discussion

• What more would you like to know about this object?
  • What questions would you like to ask the people who made it or the people who collected it?
• Why do you think an object like this worthy of collecting?
• What do you think would have been stored in this bowl?
• Who do you think would have owned this bowl?
  • If you owned this bowl, what might you put in it?
• Imagine that you bought this bowl as a gift. Who might you give it to and why?