Dr. E. Leigh Syms, Curator of Archaeology
The Victoria Day Site is the largest and oldest burial cache of bones and antler tools ever found in Manitoba or the boreal forest of Canada. It consists of 43 artifacts, most recovered in 1995 on the shore of Threepoint Lake west of Thompson, Manitoba, Canada, as part of the Churchill River Diversion Archaeological Project (CRDAP).

Dave Riddle, Manitoba Historic Resources Branch, conducted the excavations with the help of Kevin Brownlee, a former Museum Aboriginal Archaeological Intern, and Elders from the Nelson House First Nation. Radu Balica, Museum Head of Conservation, carried out conservation treatment on some of the broken and delicate carving tools. I coordinated analysis of the artifacts performed by a variety of specialists, and also conducted comparative research on bone and antler tools in general, and items of similar age from elsewhere in North America.

Manitoba Hydro provided funding for the original fieldwork through CRDAP. When they realized the importance of this outstanding collection, Hydro generously provided an additional grant for the recording, replication, analysis and display of these items. Elders from Nelson House First Nation helped recover the cache and have been supportive in the analysis. We have returned the artifacts to Nelson House for reburial. We produced two displays from this research, one for a Nelson House First Nations school and the other for Manitoba Hydro’s foyer. Teachers, students and community members were excited to see the display.
The most common items in the cache are the 11 harpoons. Most are long (to 33.5 cm) and made from fragments of moose leg bone. They have delicate curved barbs that look like waves in cross-section. Several have small line holes while others have decorations of shallow notches and/or long incised lines. They are works of art as well as examples of superb craftsmanship.

Several tools are made from large pieces of antler. These include a large adze with a sharp bit for cutting and trimming trees; two highly polished scrapers probably used for working hides or opening holes in the ice; a shallow ladle or dish; a small peg; and an antler tine scraper with a sharp, asymmetrical bit end.

All of these tools are unique finds for Manitoba and most have never been recovered anywhere else in Canada. The cache also contained flat tools made from ribs and other bone fragments, probably used for polishing, smoothing, flattening quills and similar activities. There were also two bone awls; 10 tools made from the incisor teeth of beaver, porcupine and muskrat; a loon wing bone and several bird beak fragments. Other artifacts included two stone tools and a shell.

We obtained two accelerated mass spectrometry (AMS) dates on the bone artifacts which averaged 4,150 years in age. The closest known similar materials are from the Frontenac Phase sites along the Ottawa River in southeastern Ontario and from the Maritime Archaic sites along the east coast. However, even these sites lack some of the kinds of tools found at the Victoria Day Site. These diverse tools provide the first detailed evidence (more than 4,000 years old) of sophisticated bone and antler tools technology in the boreal forest of Canada. Several of them are unique examples of Native Craftsmanship. This cache requires archaeologists to revise their understanding of Native developments and accomplishments in the boreal forest and Canadian Shield.

Dr. E. Leigh Syms, Curator of Archaeology

The ancient Aschkibokahn Site was a Native camp located on an island between the mouths of the Duck and Drake rivers on Duck Bay. It was occupied during the Late Woodland period about 800 years ago.

The Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery, will feature a mini-diorama showing the occupation of the site during spring spawning and a winter camp near Riding Mountain. The accompanying unit reflects the diversity of tools and camp activities of the Native hunters and fishers. While at the site, we noted the rich resources of the lake, marsh and rivers. Faunal remains show that animals of the nearby forest and more distant Parklands were also hunted.

We will include examples of the great diversity of tools and ceramics found, reflecting the outstanding manufacturing skills of the inhabitants. These tools provide the information needed to identify the distinctive Duck Bay culture, which is probably ancient Ojibway or Anishinaabe heritage.

Bone and antler tools include harpoons, awls, beads, bone marrow extractors, ceramic decorators, hide fleshers and incising tools. These tools had to be cut, split, ground and polished during manufacturing. They often exhibit great care in production. The harpoons have sharp, tapered barbs that were beautifully formed. A bone point was whittled with a stone knife to produce a point and a narrow shaft. This shaft is so perfectly round and uniform that it looks as though it was made on a modern lathe.

Stone tools include arrow points, knives, scraping tools, drills and multi-purpose worked flakes (the forerunner of the jackknife). These were used for hunting, construction and processing. Most of the stone used in the tools consists of locally available Swan River and Cat Head chert (a fine-grained quartz rock that produces sharp edges). Other stone, such as Selkirk chert from the Red River Valley and Knife River flint from western North Dakota, demonstrated widespread trade networks.

The ceramic vessels are thin-walled with a variety of decorative patterns. Our replicative research indicates that they were made in textile bag moulds. We now appreciate that these potters were master craftspeople to have produced such large, thin-walled vessels. The rim and lip areas are decorated with distinct patterns of stamps and cord-wrapped tool impressions.

Archaeologists rely on its ceramic variation to place the Duck Bay complex in the broader cultural history. This group was part of a dynamic changing people who were adapting their technology, and adjusting to social and environmental change.

The group who occupied Aschkibokahn left evidence of their activities at many other sites in the southern interlake country and elsewhere. The evidence of the Duck Bay culture found at these sites has made us realize that the precontact history/heritage of the many Manitoba First Nations is much more diverse and complex than we had previously realized.

The Wright Site: Discovering New Knowledge about our Human and Natural Heritage

Dr. Bill Preston, (Retired) Curator of Herpetology and Ichthyology

“The Process of Discovery unit’ of the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery will illustrate how and why we do research at The Manitoba Museum. Although a number of research projects will be highlighted, the centrepiece is the Wright Site which combines both human and natural history research.

The Wright Site is located north of Winnipeg on the Red River. At the site, erosion has exposed changes that have occurred over the past 6,000 years. These changes are indicated by layers of snail shells, pieces of Bison bone, and layers of charcoal indicating past prairie fires and hearths where First Nations people once camped.

Research was first conducted at this site by Erik Nielsen, Dr. Brian McKillop and Glen Conley, and published in 1993. In 1996, Museum staff (Dr. Leigh Syms, Dr. Brian McKillop, Dr. Graham Young, diorama artist Betsy Thorsteinson, and photographer Rob Barrow) continued research at the site with the assistance of volunteers.

The site was visited in late September to check access but the water levels of the Red River were too high. When the water was sufficiently low to allow safe access in late October, a trip was planned to make a test ‘peel’ of the soil column. A “peel” is a thin section of the soil column embedded in plastic and peeled off its surface. The team collected several peels over a two day period. This process was difficult, as temperatures were too low for the materials to set properly. Measurements and more photographs were also obtained.

Exhibit panel displaying reasearch materials from the Wright Site

This unit will reveal the research process using photographs and graphics of the site and lab. We plan to display the soil column showing the ages of artifacts and specimens as determined by carbon dating. Actual sections of soil (peels collected at the site) will relate to the appropriate part of the column.

Looking at a layer of charcoal in the soil column, we can imagine a prairie fire sweeping through the area, some 3,000 years ago. The remains of a hearth evoke an image of an ancient First Nations encampment. A layer of snail shells indicates that the area was once very wet, perhaps flooded for a prolonged period. At this site, we go back approximately 450 million years as the bedrock is of the Ordovician period.

To help with these reconstructions, we will include graphics of what the site might have looked like in the past. These paintings of prairie fires, encampments and bison herds will relate to the appropriate section of the soil column.

Stan Carbone, (Former) Assistant Curator of Multicultural Studies

The Ukrainian Rye Farming diorama incorporates two important forces in the development of the Parklands/Mixed Woods region: ethnic settlements and agriculture. Ethno-cultural groups have contributed enormously to the historical, socio-economic and cultural landscape of the region. A case in point is the Ukrainian presence in the municipality of Stuartburn.

Located along the Canadian-American border in the eastern corner of the province, the municipality includes the towns of Vita, Stuartburn, Tolstoi and Gardenton. Two rivers – the Rat and the Roseau – run across it. Ukrainians first settled in the area in 1896. Initially, they were attracted to the area because of a nearby Ukrainian speaking Mennonite settlement. Subsequent groups settled in Stuartburn to be with family and friends, and because the landscape reminded them of their native land. By 1921, three-quarters of the municipality’s population was Ukrainian. Only the municipality of Ethelbert, near Riding Mountain, had a higher percentage of Ukrainians.

archival photograph of rye harvesting in the 1920s

Like most of the other residents in Stuartburn, Ukrainians took up farming. Their crops included rye, oats, barley, buckwheat, flax and wheat. Because rye is a very hardy crop, it could be grown on marginal land that characterized significant sections of the municipality.

Ukrainian homes depended on rye grain primarily for breadmaking, alcohol production and livestock feed. Rye straw was used as pasturage and feed for animals; to make paper and packing material; and as bedding for livestock. The use of rye was not limited to the end product of grain and straw. Rye was also grown for its extensive root system which was able to eliminate weeds and wild oats, and prevent soil erosion.

In the early years, most Ukrainians did not produce enough rye or wheat to make a living. Consequently, they carried out other activities to augment household finances. Harvesting and selling wiregrass was one such endeavour. Wiregrass, a type of wild hay, was used to make mats, baskets, brushes and straw hats. Another activity was digging Seneca, a medicinal plant, and selling it to local store owners for 10 to 15 cents a pound.

Dr. Katherine Pettipas, Curator of Native Ethnology and the Hudson’s Bay Company Museum Collection

The subject matter for the Ethnology content of the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery has largely come from consultation with representatives from First Nations and Metis communities. Ojibwa, Cree, Dakota and Metis community workers and elders have contributed over 40 oral histories to assist us with our research. As a result, the history of treaties, the reserve systems, life under the Indian Act, community life and contemporary issues such as self government will be highlighted in the new Gallery.

One of our ongoing community based projects involves gathering information from several sources for a Metis history project. Researchers Audreen Hourie, Father Guy Lavallae and Darrell Racine collected, over a period of a year, cultural and historical information, artifacts and photographs from various Metis communities in the Parklands area. Audreen gathered materials for the reconstruction of a Metis kitchen from the 1920-30 period. The diorama will serve as a unique way for visitors to explore the history, culture and lifestyles of the Metis during a time when they were very much a “forgotten” people. This project has allowed us to make significant progress in the documentation and gathering of Métis material culture, which unfortunately is very under-represented in most Canadian museums.

The success of all our projects is largely due to the interest of various communities in the development of the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery. The support is very much appreciated. In addition to artifacts, we have also been offered important family and community photographs.

Métis objects on display in the new Gallery

Jack Dubois, (Retired) Associate Curator of Mammalogy and Ornithology

One of the more fascinating creatures in Manitoba is the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus). These small insect eaters gather in groups of up to 10,000 to overwinter together in caves, known as “hibernacula”. Only a few caves are sufficiently deep and have the necessary structure to maintain their temperature at 5 °C, allowing the bats to hibernate in them from late September to late April.
Caves in the Parklands region are critical to the survival of this species in Manitoba. Little brown bats, in their natural habitat, the cave, will form one of the major dioramas of the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery.

Little brown bats recreated for placement in the cave

Cave in early construction stage

Little brown bats feed on small flying insects like moths and mosquitoes, each eating several grams every night. In the summer, groups of female bats live in “nursery colonies” in hollow trees and attics. They each give birth to one young in early June. The males disperse singly around the province, roosting in trees and sometimes under building soffits. All of them return to the caves in early August, where mating occurs prior to winter hibernation.

In 1988, Jack Dubois began to study the little brown bat. His objectives were to map the distribution of little brown bats in Manitoba; to locate as many hibernacula and summer nursery colonies as possible, and to determine where bats found in hibernacula spend summers and where bats found in summer colonies overwinter.

To map distributions and to monitor seasonal movements of bats, a banding program was set up. Speleological Society of Manitoba members and other volunteers helped find bat caves. Information provided by home and cottage owners, the Manitoba Department of Natural Resources and others led to the summer banding of bats in residential and cottage areas throughout the province and into adjacent northwestern Ontario around Lake of the Woods.

Most banding has occurred in caves in the Grand Rapids and Gypsumville areas, and in St. George Cave, north of Hodgson. Sleeping bats are plucked by hand from the cave wall and placed in a cloth bag. Once they are captured, the bats are examined to determine sex, reproductive status, age, signs of injuries and whether external parasites, like fleas and mites, are present.

Previously banded bats are recorded and any injuries and/or parasites are noted. Time in capture and handling is kept to a minimum to avoid stressing the animals. So far, approximately 6,000 little brown bats have been banded in caves and approximately 750 at nursery colonies. Band returns have shown the bats to be very loyal to their summer and winter roosts. The majority of those banded in the summer on the west side of the province appear to hibernate in a single cave in south central Manitoba, sometimes travelling more than 300 km each way. Less than one percent of bats banded in a particular cave have ever been found in another cave.

As a result of this study, at least 13 caves are known to serve as hibernacula for little brown bats in Manitoba. The largest discovered to date is St. George Cave. After several years of effort, the Province of Manitoba has declared this critical cave and a small area around it an ecological reserve. This is the most stringent legal protection available to a natural feature. More than 20,000 little browns spend each winter in that cave and they are very vulnerable to any form of disturbance while deep in their winter sleep.

Dr. Brian McKillop, (Retired) Curator of Invertebrates

In the new Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery, a diorama will depict one of Manitoba’s special places, the Parklands saltsprings. They are unique, home to some of the least known animals on earth. Similar features are found only in central Russia, China, Australia and southern Africa. Before 1987, almost no research had been done at the Manitoba sites. Along with scientists from various universities and research centres across Canada, Brian McKillop has been studying them for more than a decade.

Areial view of saltspring

In 1987, Dr. McKillop and Dr. Erik Nielsen of the Manitoba Department of Mines and Energy, described a site on the western shore of Lake Winnipegosis where numerous small aquatic snails were found within the beach sand. Through radiocarbon dating and identification, they were found to be an extinct marine (saltwater) animal that lived along the beach 4,550 years ago. With this snail specie were two other minute invertebrates, both of which proved to be of marine origin.

They then found that salty water from springs enters Lake Winnipegosis along much of the western shore. Water and biological samples from the saltsprings were collected and analyzed. Researchers found about 80 marine animal species living in the saltsprings, two of which were unknown to science.
The most recent research has shown how the marine animals colonized the saltsprings. Working with Sid Kroker, a palynologist (pollen expert), the climatic history was reconstructed by looking at the species composition of the pollen grains, collected at various depths at the site.

Using these data it was possible to identify periods of likely colonization and extinction of various marine species. Lake Agassiz drained some 8,000 years ago. However, it took approximately 2,500 years for invertebrates to appear since the period of optimal warm conditions known as the Hypsithermal, did not occur until then. Only at that time could subtropical species coming up from the Gulf of Mexico survive.

Equally important was the correct water salinity. During glaciation, freshwater under the glaciers was injected into the springs, pushing back the saline waters. Once the glaciers retreated, pressure associated with the 200 m deep Lake Agassiz would have continued to force freshwater into the springs.

As Lake Agassiz drained, pressure was removed and freshwater was flushed out by saline waters. Thus about 5,500 years ago, brine would have started flowing from the saltsprings with ever increasing salinity. The warm climatic period was starting and bird flyways were opening up from the south. The birds brought new potential immigrants on their feet and feathers.

Diorama artist Betsy Thorsteinson placing final touches on gallery exhibit

One cannot help but be awed by the uniqueness of the saltspring animals. Transported precariously by shore birds, they had to enter a saltwater environment to survive.

Even more astonishing, they had to arrive at this environment when its salinity was close to that of their parent coastal salt flat and then adapt rapidly to ever increasing salinities. Finally, the fact that two of the species found were unknown to science indicates that animal speciation can take place in as few as 5,500 years.

Change and Diversity: The Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery’s Orientation Area

David Lavallee and Dr. Graham Young, Curator of Geology & Paleontology
The Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery’s Orientation Area, now open to the public, provides the first glimpse at the Museum’s final chapter in the story of Manitoba.

“The basic purpose of the Orientation Area is to give people a short introduction to the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery,” said Dr. Graham Young, Curator of Geology and Paleontology and Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery Project Manager. “The area will provide visitors with an introduction to the new Gallery’s broad themes including diversity, as the Parklands is the most diverse region in Manitoba, and change, since the region has undergone a number of changes since the most recent Ice Age.”

The Orientation Area is accessible from two locations ” the upper Boreal Forest area and the Nonsuch Gallery balcony”providing visitors with a “teaser” for the new Gallery, and allowing for improved traffic flow. Upon entering the Orientation Area, visitors pass through a grove of poplars, the most common and characteristic tree species in the region. Once through, visitors encounter a variety of displays with differing degrees of interactivity.

On one of the area’s walls is posted a series of quotations and observations made by early settlers and travellers in Manitoba’s Parklands. While some of these are rave reviews of the region, others reflect the adversity met by some early immigrants. On the other side of the area is an edge-lit etched glass wall that illustrates a profile across Manitoba’s Parklands from west to east.

The more interactive displays include a globe, which visitors can spin to see the distribution of parklands terrain all over the Northern Hemisphere, from North America to Europe to Asia. The crowning jewel, however, is the digital projection map featuring a control panel that allows visitors to view short presentations on a variety of topics, from geographic patterns to the migrations of Aboriginal and Metis people to population and urbanization trends.

“We discovered that the development of this type of interactive exhibit is an extremely labour-intensive process,” said Dr. Young. “There was an incredible amount of research needed to obtain the information for new exhibits.” The projection map presented a particular challenge, as changing lake boundaries and other natural features required a significant amount of research in order to be accurately portrayed. Even changing air transportation routes had to be researched, and a great deal of time was spent in libraries and other institutions accumulating information.

All Museum curators conducted research in the course of the Gallery’s development. Once the basic research was complete, they turned their attentions to developing it into exhibit copy for the Gallery. In fact, a contract exhibit developer, Fleur Storace, was brought in for about a year to help with the tremendous amount of work.

With the development of one of the Museum’s most interactive Gallery moving along steadily, the Orientation Area is an exciting preview of things to come.

In anticipation of the September 20, 2003 opening of the Parklands/MixedWoods Gallery, we have been keeping you up-to-date with behind-the-scenes stories of its development. The next element to be featured is the creation of a family for the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery’s Ukrainian Rye Farm Diorama.

Museum Sculptor Ota Pavlik (retired) applies plaster strips to volunteer model Ann Szabo

From uneven skin tone, freckles and veins to individual eyelashes and tiny facial hairs, the five full-sized mannequins of the Parklands/Mixed-Woods Gallery’s Ukrainian farm family are so lifelike, Exhibit Artist Kathleen Fonseca says she is often startled by the figure of the father currently being stored in her workshop.

“The mannequins are like anything else we create here at the Museum,” said Fonseca. “Just like the flowers, plants, bats or snakes that will be on display in the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery, the human figures simply have to be realistic. We try our best to create figures that look exactly as they would in their environment to ensure the experience is as real as possible for our visitors.”

This means going to extraordinary lengths. From the making of plaster molds to the period clothing and the artistry of the final details, the process of creating a human figure is lengthy and painstaking.

The project began approximately four years ago headed by Museum Sculptor Ota Pavlik (retired) and former Associate Curator Of Multicultural Studies Stan Carbone, and is now being completed by Diorama Artist Betsy Thorsteinson, and Curator of Social History Sharon Reilly. The team sought out volunteer models who were willing to go through the challenging experience of being wrapped with plaster.

Pavlik and Fonseca wrap volunteer model, Rodney Kraynyk's, torso

The plastering of the human models was undertaken in two sections that included the legs and abdomen, and the torso and arms.

The plaster, applied in strips layer by layer, measures about one-quarter inch thick when dried and hardened. In order to maintain the awkward and uncomfortable positions required to fashion the mannequins as they would appear in the diorama, the models supported themselves with the help of farm implements and wooden stands during the plastering process. Once the plaster was dry, Museum artists cut the suit with a saw to remove it, just like the process of removing a cast from a broken arm.

By far the most difficult part of the process is the wrapping of the head, taking approximately three hours to complete and leaving only two small holes under the nostrils for breathing. According to Fonseca, the molding materials and plaster jacket are actually quite heavy, and warm up as the plaster hardens.
“We weren’t able to completely wrap the young girl’s head as it would have been quite scary for her,” said Fonseca. “We left part of the nose and the eyes uncovered and molded each ear separately so it would be a little less unpleasant. Her head is still in the process of being sculpted.

Mannequin of the father nearing completion

To make molds of the face, ears, arms and hands, legs and feet, we used plastident, a material used to form dental impressions. This material is lighter, has a minty-fresh smell, and doesn’t irritate the skin. The difference is that we have to pour plaster into these molds immediately. All these separate molds are then joined together with plasticine and sculpted as a whole, then a rubber mold will be made from it. We are still in the process of making this final mold.”

To make hand and head molds for the remaining four mannequins, Museum artists used silicon. A thick, white substance that dries within minutes, silicon captures incredible detail from the laugh lines and pores of the face to fingerprints. Once the flexible silicon molds have dried and been removed, resin is poured into them to harden, creating the mannequins’ realistic face and hands, parts that won’t be covered by clothing.

In the final stages, Thorsteinson went to work on the meticulous detail, airbrushing the visible parts with skin-toned oil paint, and adding freckles, veins and eyelashes one by one. A wig maker was contracted to create the hair and a mustache for the mannequins, and extra hair was added around the hairline and eyebrows.

Lee-Ann Blase, a Museum conservation department volunteer with a clothing and textiles degree, was charged with the tasks of taking the mannequins’ measurements and researching and creating accurate period clothing.

“I visited the Stuartburn region museum with Sharon Reilly, and I studied photographs from the era to determine the types of natural fabrics and colours to use,” said Blase. “This has been a really wonderful experience for me as I have made clothing and worked in conservation in the past, but I have never had to make clothing appear old. The usual processes such as dyes and painted-on dirt work well for the theatre where the audience is far away, but they aren’t suitable when the audience can get within four feet of the figure,” said Blase, of the process that has seen her using sand paper and wire brushes to rough up the fabric, mimicking perspiration stains with three-day old tea, placing garments outside to fade them in the sun and even wearing the clothes to give them a used look.

A lasting impression of volunteer model Kibsey at 10 years old

“All this work really is worth it : it may be incredibly time-consuming but the end result really is something to see,” said Fonseca. “Sure, we could have purchased pre-made mannequins like those used in stores but the impact wouldn’t be the same. The lifelike quality of these mannequins is what brings the story to life.”

Completed mannequin of the mother

With the Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery nearing completion, the Ukrainian family will soon be placed in the Rye Farm Diorama where Museum visitors can get a glimpse into the life and times of Manitoba’s early 20th century settlers.

The Parklands/Mixed Woods Gallery, is now open and alive with adventure. Come in and discover Manitoba’s heartland.

Glass whimsies, including corkscrew style cane, glass chain, candy cane style cane, cane with brown streak running down centre, c. 1906 - 1908

Glass blowers were highly skilled craftsmen. Although obliged to blow crude glass bottles to make a living, they were capable of doing much more intricate work, and fashioned beautiful and fragile glass ‘whimsies’ like the chain and canes shown above…

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