of the hat, tied with fiber through the surface of the wood.
is found on the top surface of the visor, reading “Chapeau
A large, vertical volute is found at the rear of the hat, its
d’un naturel – Detroit de Behring.”
edges worked with semi-circular cutouts to form a pattern
Closed-crown hats were already uncommon in the eras
resembling peaked ocean waves. Holes bored into the volute
in which they were created and are of extreme rarity today.
hold a group of sea lion whiskers that project far out from
In her book Glory Remembered: Wooden Headgear of Alaska
the back of the hat, remnants of a hunter’s prestige crest that
Sea Hunters, scholar Lydia Black identified just fifty-one
would have bobbed and waved in the breeze. There is an old
known examples of this type around the world, held almost
indigenous repair along the right front side of the hat, attesting
exclusively by institutions in Russia, Europe and the United
to the value, efficacy and importance of this hat to its owners.
States. Black refers to a single known example at the time of
By the end of the eighteenth century, at least two hundred
writing in private hands, which may be the hat offered here.
European scientific and commercial voyages had been made
The detailed workmanship, exceptional condition and deep,
up the northwest coast of North America. Navigators from
rich patina of this hat place it among the best examples known.
Russia, Britain, Spain, France, and the United States set
Objects of this rarity, age, and quality seldom, if ever, come
out to claim what they could for their nations in the New
to the market and we are honored to present this stunning
World, and this hat was probably collected by a French
example, held in a private collection since 1969 and offered
expedition at that time. An old, handwritten collection label
for the first time in over fifty years.
t h e fa i t h - d o r i a n a n d m a r t i n w r i g h t c lo s e d - c r o w n h u n t i n g h at
69