That’s an interesting story and fiddle. The orientation of the bear is intriguing, as it faces the audience. Lots of ornamental scrolls face the player instead.

Unfortunately, I think you’ll have a hard time finding anything concrete about it without any direct documentation. If there’s a chance that it was carved on a reservation, you might ask to speak to a museum curator who has familiarity with carvings. The style of the bear might be an indicator, although it’s a bit of a long shot. It’s difficult to make a determination of the violin’s age. The ornaments may be original but may also be later additions. Almost everything looks to be handmade, so it’s not possible to narrow it down by looking at parts as clues (something that can be done occasionally with violins made from kits).

There were a great number of “rustic fiddles” made by people who didn’t have easy access to violins in more urban areas. If they’re undocumented, it’s typically impossible to identify a maker, as most of the makers didn’t make enough instruments to be known and added to the dictionaries of makers. Henley and Wenberg put a lot of effort into gathering information, but they couldn’t track every obscure maker down.

I’d check inside the violin for any signatures or markings.

what a cool-looking fiddle!
It almost looks like it could be a five-string, but hard to tell from photo.
I wonder what it sounds like, but it seems like the kind of instrument that could wind up in a cultural exhibit.

I poked around on the internet and couldn't come up with anything promising, so I contacted Anne Lederman, who I figured might have connections there. I'll send you her response privately, but she knows someone who might know someone .....

If it has a Del Gesu label inside I’d be thinking that there is a good chance that it might be a fake. But I’ve been known to be wrong.