Framed Art Card - Half Moon
For countless thousands of years mankind has looked up into the heavens to watch the celestial bodies journey across the sky to mark each day of the year. The sun warms the earth and gives light so that everyone can see. The stars form patterns in the sky and serve as reference points to the very origins of different peoples. The moon, in many ways, has sparked the imagination with its regular cycle of transformation.
The moon has a number of different phases in its cycle. When the moon is between the earth and the sun, it appears dark and is referred to as a “New Moon.” When the moon and the sun are on opposite sides of the earth, the moon is bright and is “full.” In between, the moon appears as a crescent, growing and then later shrinking as each day passes. The phases are: New Moon, Waxing Crescent, First Quarter, Waxing Gibbous, Full Moon, Waning Gibbous, Last Quarter, and Waning Crescent. An average moon cycle is 27 days, 7 hours, and 43 minutes.
In Kwakwaka’wakw tradition, the Full and Half Moons are seen to battle for the right to show themselves at night. In one particular dance, the Full Moon and the Half Moon come out on the dance floor making noise and pointing to the moon shape above their respective masks. The singers, realizing that they are fighting over who should show themselves suggest that they have a dance contest. After a hilarious bought of dancing, the winner is declared by the assembled guests and can journey across the sky that evening. “Full Moon” and “Half Moon” are a matching set of prints.
(9" x 12")
