Haudenosaunee Club

A double image of a club. It is made of wood and curved. On the end it has a thread looped through. On the top image the side of the club has a snake, on the bottom it has a small fish.
A double image of the Iroquois Club

Country of Origin: Canada or the United States  
Year: ca. 1800s 
Materials: Wood with leather strap  

This club is one of the pieces belonging to Indigenous groups in Canada, and this has been identified as belonging to Iroquois peoples. Typical to the clubs attributed to the Confederacy, these weapons were asymmetrical, often with a curved and stylized handle.  The heavy round head and handle are both carved from a single piece of wood. On the one side there is a carved image of a snake, on the other side there is an image of a fish.  

Unfortunately, it was common for many upper-class Canadian families in the Victorian Era to have Indigenous artifacts in their private collections. Objects belonging to Indigenous people were seen as items of curiosity and majority did not understand the importance of objects to their communities. Eldon House aims to discuss the colonial impact of Victorian collecting on communities including those that affected Indigenous populations.  

We acknowledge that we are on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak and Attawandaron. We honour and respect the history, languages and culture of the diverse Indigenous people who call this territory home.

We acknowledge all the treaties that are specific to this area: the Two Row Wampum Belt Treaty of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy/Silver Covenant Chain; the Beaver Hunting Grounds of the Haudenosaunee NANFAN Treaty of 1701; the McKee Treaty of 1790, the London Township Treaty of 1796, the Huron Tract Treaty of 1827, with the Anishinaabeg, and the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum of the Anishnaabek and Haudenosaunee.

The three Indigenous Nations that are neighbours to London are the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation; Oneida Nation of the Thames; and the Munsee-Delaware Nation who all continue to live as sovereign Nations with individual and unique languages, cultures, and customs.