Trophy :
1. A prize or memento, such as a cup or a plaque, received as a symbol of victory, especially in sports.
2. A specimen or part, such as a lion's head, preserved as a token of a successful hunt.
3. A memento as of one's personal achievements.
4. The spoils of war, dedicated in classical antiquity with an inscription to a deity, and set up as a temporary monument, on or near a battlefield, placed in an existing temple, or housed in a permanent, new structure.
freedictionary.com
Quotations
"When you go to an art gallery, you are simply a tourist looking at the trophy cabinet of a few millionaires."
-Bransky
"As can be seen in the extent to which trophy specimens are stressed and valued in contemporary hunting culture, all in individual needs to do is examine some contemporary hunting magazines and televised hunting programs. Articles and shows focus almost exclusively on animals of trophy proportions..."
Eliason, Stephen L. "A Statewide Examination of Hunting and Trophy Nonhuman Animals: Perspectives of Montana Hunters." Society & Animals 16.3 (2008): 256-278. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 1 Sept. 2010.
"Trophy photographs in hunting magazines are thus important story-telling instruments. They stand as records of hunting prowess, strength and virility and as evidence for the audience...of the hunters' killing experiences."
Kalof, L., & Fitzgerald, A. Reading the trophy: Exploring the display of dead animals in hunting magazines. Visual Studies, 18 (2), 112-122. (2003).
"The demand for trophy animals has to do with their scarcity. Trophy-animal heads are a status symbol, and are an example of positional goods."
Bell, M. M. An invitation to environmental sociology. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge. (2004).
**These quotes all relate because of the intangible value being placed on the concept of the "trophy." Bransky relates this value to artistic works "worthy" of gallery representation, as an illegitimate symbol of collectors' status. The other quotes are authors and environmentalist journalists discussing the status behind animal trophy hunting.
Annotated Bibliography Entry
Harrison, Simon. "Skull trophies of the Pacific War: transgressive objects of remembrance." Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 12.4 (2006): 817-836. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 1 Sept. 2010.
This article investigates the claiming of human anatomical parts, namely heads, as a trophy or "spoil" of war. Harrison focuses on the discoveries of former Allied soldiers' possession of Japanese skulls dated from the second world war. Simon also examines the sociological background of human trophy taking in various societies and within a given culture. He relates this to traditional hunting and its implications to issues of male identity or status. Issues of racism pertain to Harrison's study especially due to the differences noticeable between the Allied handling of the skull trophies and other societies in which "headhunting" is a community affair celebrated by tradition and ceremony. Harrison speaks from a professional and seemingly non-biased platform, making the article easy to study at a research level. This article aids in connecting the various concepts of my work with trophy animal pieces and issues of male identity and power. Harrison also introduces concepts I hadn't previously considered, such as issues across cultures as well as racism, which could potentially help me in expanding my work.
My Work
The topic of "trophy" relates to the work I am doing with taxidermy. The point of taxidermy is to display on a wall the proof of one's success on a hunt, which lends itself to pertaining to issues of status, self-worth, masculinity, etc. These are all areas I am interested in conveying through my work. The research I did today on this topic helped me validate my own personal artistic connection with these concepts, as well as pushed me to examine farther into historical and societal contexts undiscovered in my work.
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