Gifts of the Helen Shandruk Estate
This antler cribbage board , a gift
of the Helen Shandruk Estate, was made by Louis Joseph Kamenka
(1916-1988). Born and raised in Canmore, Louis was a blacksmith and miner
for Canmore Mines Ltd. Along with cribbage boards, he also made antlers
into ashtrays, letter openers, salt & pepper shakers, buttons,
belt buckles, brooches, hair barrettes and lamps. These were sold through
the Hudson Bay Company all across Canada and also through Louis’s
brother’s store in Banff - “Len’s Souvenirs.”
Collecting antlers was a family event every
spring. With seven children in the family, hikes usually had a purpose -
fishing, collecting antlers, or gathering berries. From the 1940s through
the 1980s, Louis spent many winter evenings making objects from antlers.
This board, made in the 1940s, is an example of an early version of his
cribbage boards. His techniques became more refined over the years. The
filed top surface is a trademark of his. The black lines bordering the peg
holes were later incised and in some cases, inlaid with copper. He took
advantage of the natural shape of the antler, carefully balanced the
board, and then padded the contact points underneath to prevent scratching
of table surfaces. The pegs were cut from coloured knitting needles and
stored inside a compartment at one end of the antler. The final stage was
the varnishing of the cribbage board.
Jack Fuller Sculpture
– Carol Black, Coordinator of Heritage Collections