Miniature sculptures of the Northwest Coast take many forms, amulets, shaman’s figure masks, hair ornaments, combs and more western-inspired forms like napkin rings.

The historical use for this object is unknown.

The compact face is carved in a totem-pole sculptural style, and could be if Tlinglit or Tsimshian manufacture. The form of the cheeks and the wide, narrow lips suggest a Tsimshian artist, though the overall style could as likely be Tlinglit, based on the work in some model totem poles from that area. The expression of the face seems to be a bit on the dour side, but it displays character and refinement in the carving.

The size of the hole that pierces the woodcarving is about three-quarter of an inch, which would work for either a hair ornament, drawn up a gathering of long hair until it was favorably positioned, or a napkin ring, pulled to the middle of a cloth napkin as a decorative element for a frontier table.

Objects of cross-cultural design were often made for fur trade workers such as the employees of the Hudson’ s Bay Company, who had forts on the northern Northwest Coast at Fort Simpson and Fort Wrangell, though the Wrangell fort was abandoned in the 1840s. Silver bracelets, wooden salad sets of serving spoon and fork, and other related objects can be found in collections around the country, usually brought back from employment or journeys on the Northwest Coast by family ancestors. Napkin rings made of engraved silver are fairly common in Northwest Coast collections, with wooden examples being a more rare kind of object.