Plan Your Visit       Hours & Directions       About Peterborough       Teachers       Lesson Plans       Booking Tours       Contact Things to See       Current Exhibit       Take A Look       Explore the Museum       Hands On       Our Instruments       Gift Shop       Library       Slide Show       Youtube       Archives Things to Do       Calendar       Upcoming Events       Workshops       E-News Signup About the Museum       Description       Dreamer & Founder       Mission       Membership       History       Board & Staff       Partnerships Home		Current Exhibit Peoples of the North Finland, Scandinavia, Scotland, Ireland & French Canada February 5 through July 15, 2010 "Peoples of the North" weaves together those populations that live in northern latitudes and share the common challenges of a long, cold winter and a short growing season but also celebrate the summer sun and the bounty of farm and forest. "Peoples of the North," which will continue through mid-July, looks at the way the peoples of Scandinavia, Scotland, Ireland and French Canada have fed, clothed, amused and sustained themselves in their northern homes — not only in their countries of origin, but also as they have migrated to the Monadnock Region. Birch Bark Shoes Barry Heiniluoma of Hubbardston, MA has loaned these birch bark shoes and their holder, also made of birch bark. They are tightly woven and would resist water, as do birch bark canoes. They come from Finland, a country with abundant forests. The Finns and their Scandinavian neighbors used wood and bark to create beautiful and utilitarian objects for household use. Birch Bark Shoes & Holder Carved Wooden Horn Last week this column showed birch bark shoes from Finland. Another example of the ingenuity of Scandinavian peoples in using wood and bark is a 21” long horn from Sweden, made for calling in the cows from the summer pastures. Birch bark is wrapped tightly around the carved wooden horn. It would be a child’s job at the end of the long summer day to bring the cows home. Agneta Brown of Greenfield has loaned this to Mariposa for “Peoples of the North”. Next to it is a “spillapipa” from Sweden’s Dalarna region, famous for its folk music and dance. This flute, on loan from Elleke Linden of Greenville, has a unique tuning and so a distinctive sound. Carved Wooden Horn Bonhomme-Gigueur Therese Lamarre Bourdon, the mother of Françoise Bourdon of Joseph’s Coat, carved and clothed this “bonhomme-gigueur”, which goes by the name of “limberjack” in Appalachia. These jointed dolls tap out dance rhythms at the end of a thin wooden paddle. The musician sits on one end of the paddle and by tapping it creates a vibration, as it if were a miniature diving board. The “bonhomme” is held by a dowel in the middle of its back and the vibrating board sets it in motion, so that it dances like a step dancer from Quebec! Françoise remembers the bonhomme dancing in the kitchen of the family home in Montreal. bonhomme-gigueur Shillelagh Both the shillelagh, a traditional Irish weapon, and the walking stick are made from the Irish blackthorn. The blackthorn is cut in the frosty midwinter, when the sap is down, so that the fine-grained bark will remain on the stick for its life. The craftsman trims the thorns, which grow up to six inches long. He may bury the stick in a manure pile or smear it with butter and place it in the chimney, where it cures slowly for 2-3 years. When dry, the stick is steamed, straightened, sanded and polished. A fine walking stick is a treasured gift — or a weapon! According to Anthony Bluett in Things Irish, the true shillelagh is a cane with a knob on one end (the root of the blackthorn or other hardwood, sometimes hollowed out and filled with molten lead, the “loaded stick”). He maintains that the short cudgel seen here was a popular weapon in 19th century London but not in Ireland. It is however sold as a “shillelagh” to tourists! Kathy Weibel of Jaffrey has loaned these to Mariposa. Shillelagh Dalarna Horse During long winter nights, parents carved toys for their children. The farmers of central Sweden depended on the horse to pull the plow in summer and loads of wood in the winter, and so they often carved horses. In the 1800s horse-making became a cottage industry in the “horse villages” of the Dalarna region. Artisans in these villages made pine furniture and clock cases. At first they whittled scraps into unpainted toys. As carved and painted horses grew popular, they were bartered and sold and became a mainstay of the household economy. Each village developed a distinctive style, as did the Russian villages that made nesting dolls or “matryoshki”. Skills passed from one generation to the next, and today nine craftsmen may work together to create one horse. The painting style has evolved over the centuries, with the bright red horse the most common. The Dalarna horse was a hit at New York’s 1939 World Exhibition and has since become an international symbol of Sweden. These horses are loaned by Agneta Brown, Kristin Frykman and Elleke Linden. Dalarna Horse Latvian Mittens During “Peoples of the North,” Mariposa is displaying stunning weaving and knitting from many northern countries where people wore warm woolens of necessity. Necessity does not account for the intricate and beautiful patterns they created, however — unless it was the necessity to have color, symbolism and the creative impulse at the center of their lives. Zaiga Upitis of Dublin has loaned us an astounding collection of knit mittens and socks from Latvia. A “mitten wheel” shows twelve different patterns, each associated in color and symbol to a particular month of the year. It is displayed on the wall of our library on the ground floor. Latvian Mittens Sealskin Boots Anne Thompson of Peterborough served as a medical missionary along the Labrador Coast in 1948. Fresh out of college, she traveled to a nursing station set up years before by Sir Wilfred Grenfell, who began his medical work in Greenland and Labrador in 1892. The sealskin boots were made for her. The maker first “barked” the sealskin (removed the fur), then chewed it to make it soft. Anne traveled to the west coast of Greenland as a tourist in 1975 and bought seal fur boots rimmed with husky fur. These boots have two layers and straw is stuffed between them for extra warmth! Sealskin Boots When children are raised with respect and curiosity towards other cultures, the world will know more peace and less war. 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