Carrying Basket Of Sea Grass
date: label: Accession Date
content: 1874
name: label: Collector
content: Dr. William H. Dall
label: Donor Name
content: U.S. Coast Survey
notes: label: Notes
content: FROM CARD: "14976-80. #14976: ILLUS.: HNDBK. N. AMER. IND., VOL.5, ARCTIC, PG. 168, FIG. 4H. ...DECORATED CARRYING BAG WITH BRAIDED TRIM & HANDLE."
label: Notes
content: Source of the information below: Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center Alaska Native Collections: Sharing Knowledge website, by Aron Crowell, entry on this artifact http://alaska.si.edu/record.asp?id=35, retrieved 5-8-2014: Carrying basket Large utility baskets with heavy braided rims were traditional carryalls. Some had open mesh bottoms, as seen on this example, which allowed for drainage when using the basket to collect sea urchins, mussels, chitons, or other beach foods. Elders discussed a similar bag at the National Museum of the American Indian in 2003 that was probably used to carry kelp, a type of seaweed. Seaweeds were part of the traditional subsistence diet, along with many varieties of shellfish. Open weave bags similar to this one were also used for carrying fish. Grass harvested late in the summer or even after the first snowmelt is preferred for this type, because it is longer and stronger than grass picked in mid-summer. From Elders' discussions of the hat in 2003 (see web page cited above for the full entries) with Mary N. Bourdukofsky, Vlass Shabolin, Maria Turnpaugh and Daria Dirks (Tanadgusix Foundation) at the National Museum of Natural History and National Museum of the American Indian, 4/07/2003-4/11/2003. Also participating: Aron Crowell and Bill Fitzhugh (NMNH) and Suzi Jones (AMHA). Mary Bourdukofsky: It's a big one. It could be their traveling bag or for food. It's a carryall bag. You can use it for anything it looks like. Nicely woven. Maria Turnpaugh: Hmm-mm. Look how the [weave at the] bottom opens up. It's open weave. Mary Bourdukofsky: It stands up. Vlass Shabolin: Yes, it'll sit flat on the bottom. It's amazing how they made their things. Aron Crowell: Is it the same kind of weave, just adaptable to any sort of shape you want to make? Mary Bourdukofsky: It's spaced, not tight like ours. Did you notice? Maria Turnpaugh: But it's the same kind of weave. Daria Dirks: But look at the bottom, it's different [open weave]. And then look at this side [edge at fold], it doesn't have it [open weave] on this side, but it does right here [other side]. Mary Bourdukofsky: Yes, it does on this side [back of fold at edge].
label: Notes
content: Daria Dirks: I wonder why, maybe to drain something? Maria Turnpaugh: To drain something, probably like clams and stuff. Mary Bourdukofsky: The fish things are widely spaced. Look how they weave it. You catch this, go around again and catch that, then go around again. Maria Turnpaugh: Yes, they make loops and then you go over it. Daria Dirks: Did she just weave this [design]. I wonder how she made it so straight. Mary Bourdukofsky: It's one line. Daria Dirks: Mine would be crooked. Maria Turnpaugh: You can make one like this. Daria Dirks: It'd take me a few years to make it this perfect. Maria Turnpaugh: You know, once you start, if you keep at, it it's so much easier. And you get more uniform then stopping and starting again, if you work at it for longer times.
label: Record Last Modified
content: 9 Feb 2016
label: Specimen Count
content: 1
place: label: Place
content: Unknown Quad / Aleutian Islands, Alaska, United States, North America
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
culture: label: Culture
content: Aleut (Unangax^ ; Unangan; Unangas)
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 003195
label: USNM Number
content: E14976-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Bag
physicalDescription: label: Length - Object
content: 35 cm