Saskatchewan Indian Religious Beliefs

Lightweight paper covers, saddle stitched with staples, 15 pages, 5.25x8.5 in - 13.5x21.5 cm, B&W photographs and illustrations. Illustrations by Art Walter.

Covers sunned; front cover soiled at bottom. Staples rusting. Pp.3 and 5 stamped by previous owner, p.8 stained in margin.

Saskatchewan Museum of Natural History Popular Series No. 7. In this slim booklet, American anthropologist and archaeologist Alice Beck Kehoe (whose husband, Thomas, was a curator at the Museum in 1963) outlines First Nations religious beliefs, rituals, and leaders in Saskatchewan. Acknowledging differences between the religious practices of the province’s Indigenous groups, Kehoe nevertheless focusses on similarities. She discusses belief in spiritual forces, explains the role of shamans, recounts ceremonies such as the Sun Dance, and describes ritual objects. Kehoe also covers new developments in North American Indigenous religions, from the advent of the Ghost Dance to the arrival of Christian and Baha’i missionaries. Images and illustrations support the text throughout.