Letters patents of the king for the establishment of the Séminaire de Québec
Parchment, wax, silk, ink
France, 1663
Musées de la civilisation, archives of the Séminaire de Québec, Séminaire 11, no 1
Photographer : Amélie Breton – Perspective

On March 26 of that same year, François de Montmorency-Laval, first bishop of Québec, drew up the Acte de fondation du Séminaire de Québec. In April, the king signed the letters patents for its establishment. The mission of the Séminaire de Québec was to prepare young men for ordination and ministry in parishes and for missionary work among the Amerindians.

Mitre
Silk, silver and gold threads
Europe, circa 1674
Musées de la civilisation, Séminaire de Québec Collection, 1993.51528.1
Photographer : Luc-Antoine Couturier
Video : written by Carolyne Bolduc; directed by Francis Lauzon

In the Roman Catholic Church, the mitre is the distinctive liturgical headdress worn  by high prelates charged with pastoral care, including bishops.

Since the Council of Trent, the Church has required bishops to wear three different mitres, depending on the ceremony. The most important is the precious mitre, sometimes decorated with gems, pearls and embroidery. However, the garnet color of this mitre does not correspond to the Latin Church conventions, being instead in the German fashion. 

Dress coat
Wool, silk satin piqué, silver
Circa 1888
Musées de la civilisation, 43-33-1
Photographer : André Kedl

This is the British evening dress worn by dignitaries during medal awards and other formal ceremonies. This dress coat was worn by Québec Premier Honoré Mercier (1840-1894), who was awarded the title of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by Pope Leo XIII on July 2, 1888, for having helped the Catholic Church. 

Armchair
Wood, beech, fibre
Jean Gourdin
France, between 1715 and 1740
Musées de la civilisation, donated by Jeanne Landry, 2010-550
Photographer : Luc-Antoine Couturier

With New France under the British crown, the governor's family returned to France, possibly leaving some of their belongings behind. In the oral tradition of the donor's family, this piece of furniture was always known as 'the Marquis de Vaudreuil's armchair'. It is not possible, however, to confirm or refute the historic provenance of this armchair.

Ype mask
Tapirape
1992
Feathers, cotton, shell
Width : 106 cm
Height : 88 cm
Depth 10 cm
Musées de la civilisation, donated by Dr. Aldo Lo Curto, 96-862
Photographer : Amélie Breton – Icône

This Ype mask, called ʺGreat Faceʺ, is covered and edged with toucan (Ramphastus tucanus) and scarlet macaw (Ara macao) feathers, which are among the most prized for making ornamentation.

The Ype mask is worn during a warrior dance performed by couples.  These masks are made in secret by men for the great Banana Festival. On the eve of the June full moon, men don the masks and, armed with ceremonial bows, run through the village yelling.

Wampum 
Purple and white streaked shell, plant fibres, flax
Attributed to the Huron-Wendat nation
Canada, 18th century
Musées de la civilisation, Séminaire de Québec Collection, 1992.1290
Photographer : Luc-Antoine Couturier
Video : written by Carolyne Bolduc; directed by Francis Lauzon. Co-produced with Télé-Québec. 

Eighteenth-century governments and armies recognized the importance of respecting the custom and practice of exchanging wampum during official meetings with Amerindians. This wampum belt, whose beads show traces of ochre, was associated with war.

Mitre
Silk, silver and gold threads
Europe, circa 1674
Musées de la civilisation, Séminaire de Québec Collection, 1993.51528.1
Photographer : Luc-Antoine Couturier
Video : written by Carolyne Bolduc; directed by Francis Lauzon

In the Roman Catholic Church, the mitre is the distinctive liturgical headdress worn  by high prelates charged with pastoral care, including bishops.

Since the Council of Trent, the Church has required bishops to wear three different mitres, depending on the ceremony. The most important is the precious mitre, sometimes decorated with gems, pearls and embroidery. However, the garnet color of this mitre does not correspond to the Latin Church conventions, being instead in the German fashion. 

Tea caddy
Silver
Thomas Woodhouse
London, 18th century
Musées de la civilisation, donated by Joyce Dawson, 2007-185
Photographe by :  Idra Labrie - Perspective Photo

Tea was introduced in North America by British colonists. Over the ages it became ingrained as part of the British way of life. Tea is practically a ritual among the British and in many former British colonies. Five o'clock tea gave rise to a variety of associated tools and accoutrements. This George III silver tea caddy was handed on through several generations of the Price Family, who owed their prominence to Québec's sawmill and pulp and paper industry. Thanks to the generosity of Joyce Dawson, née Price, it is now part of the Museum's collection.

The National Banks' first bank note
Musée de la civilisation, Séminaire de Québec Collection, 1991.2189

First "One dollar - Une piastre" bill, produced by the Banque Nationale (now also known as the National Bank of Canada), the first Francophone bank, founded and incorporated in Quebec in 1859 by French-Canadian businessmen. It was uniface (printed on one side only), as was customary until 1871.

It featured Quebec City's coat of arms, created by Joseph Légaré; a portrait of Jacques Cartier by Théophile Hamel; and the image of an inhabitant, reflecting a French-Canadian cultural identity.

Numbered "N°1" and dated  April 28, 1860 by hand, it was signed by "F. Vezina" Treasurer-Teller and "U. J. Tessier," Co-Founder, first President of the Bank, and politician, who donated it to the Université Laval's numismatic museum, the  Musée de numismatique. This bill was never in circulation.

Our numismatic collection contains 30 000 objects (10 000 bank notes and pieces of paper currency, 15 000 coins, 6 500 medals and insignias).

Ref.: Reference objects, Musées de la civilisation, 2011, 116-117

Typical of the style of shirts worn in England and France in the 19th century, this shirt features a ruff and was hand-sewn from fabric in a floral design.

After the seminal alliance in 1609, the Huron-Wendats maintained political and trading relations with the French, and, beginning in 1760, with the English. These relations were maintained, in particular, through the giving of gifts from the king, an annual event through which the colonial government offered its allies objects of interest, such as guns, gunpowder, and lead, but also clothing, fabric, etc.

This type of shirt, sewn for Aboriginals in workrooms, is well-documented in New England. The presence of this type of clothing among the Huron-Wendats demonstrates that it is likely that such workrooms existed in Lower Canada.

This shirt was worn by the Huron-Wendat chiefs of the lineage of Nicolas Vincent Tsawenhohi (1769 to 1844) and Paul Picard Ondawanhont (1788 to 1871), two significant figures in the history of this nation.

Used as a tunic or shirt under a military frock coat, this shirt frequently appeared in depictions of northeastern Aboriginals in the 18th and 19th centuries.

This magnificently decorated ceremonial headdress was worn by François-Xavier Picard Tahourenché (1810 to 1883), Chief of the warriors of the Huron-Wendat nation from 1840 to 1870 and Grand Chief of the nation from 1870 to 1883. This is just one of the elements of the ceremonial costume worn in turn by the family's descendants: his son Paul (1845 to 1905), his grandson Pierre-Albert (1881 to 1958), and his granddaughter Clémentine (1882 to 1955). Through this gesture, the chief affirmed direct descendancy from the Picard lineage.

This knife has an ebony handle held in place by five brass rivets. On one side of the blade, there are engraved motifs representing a bison and an Amerindian horseback rider. On the opposite side is a fox-hunting scene. The quality of the materials used and the exceptional craftsmanship demonstrate the historical authenticity and significance of these types of gifts offered by political authorities to the chiefs of Aboriginal nations within the context of treaties and during official ceremonies.

This Bowie-style Celebration Knife was presented to Grand Chief Simon Romain Tehariolian in 1850. It was likely given by British North American authorities at a formal event. Simon Romain Tehariolian served as Grand Chief of the Huron-Wendat Nation from 1845 to 1870.

Zacharie Vincent Telari-o-lin (1815 to 1886), a self-taught painter, is an enigmatic figure in Quebec's art and ethnological history. The myth surrounding him states that he was the last "pure-blooded" Huron. His Huron-Wendat name, Telari-o-lin, means "unmixed, undivided." Zacharie Vincent sometimes fuelled this claim by painting self-portraits reflecting resistance to cultural integration. However, most of his works depicted scenes of the everyday lives of people in his village. These depictions eloquently showed the great cultural and economic changes that were taking place at the time.