Xisiwe’ (Wolf Headdress), late 19th century
Unknown maker, Koskimo [Gusgimaxw], Kwakwaka’wakw
Wood, pigment, and synthetic hair, 8 5/8 × 14 7/8 × 7 7/8 in. (22 × 38 × 20 cm)
Restored, 1977; conserved, 1990–1991, 1998, and 2004
Courtesy American Museum of Natural History, Division of Anthropology, New York City, 16/8200

Xisiwe’ (wolf headdresses) are used by the Kwakwaka’wakw in the presentation of hereditary dance privileges. The present appearance of this headdress is the result of collaborative treatment decisions made between museum conservators and community consultants in 1990 in preparation for an exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History. The Kwakwaka’wakw felt that it would be inappropriate to display the incomplete headdress with its significant loss of hair due to insect damage; for ceremonies, they routinely repair and enhance regalia regardless of its historic or heirloom status. Rather than reintroduce human or horse hair, typically used on such items, a compromise was struck to create a removable synthetic hair attachment that satisfied both community protocols of repair and modern conservation objectives of making readily apparent and “reversible” interventions.