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Exhibition History"Art Des Indiens D'Amerique Du Nord Dans La Collection D'Eugene Thaw," Mona Bismarck Foundation, Paris, France, Somogy Editions D'Art, January 21, 2000 - March 18, 2000.
ProvenanceBelieved to have been given as a presentation piece to James Bruce, the 8th Earl of Elgin and 12th Earl of Kincardine, governor-general of Canada during his residency 1847-1854; descended in the Elgin family to the 11th Earl of Elgin and the 15th Earl of Kincardine, Dunfermline, Scotland
BibliographyVincent, Gilbert et al. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2000, p.61.
Fognell, Eva and Alexander Brier Marr, eds. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection at the Fenimore Art Museum, 2nd ed. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2016, p. 43.
Culture
Wendat (Huron)
Box
Date1847-1854
MediumBirchbark, moosehair
DimensionsOverall: 2 1/4 × 3 3/4 × 8 3/8 in. (5.7 × 9.5 × 21.3 cm)
Object numberT0284a-b
Credit LineGift of Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw
Photograph by Richard Walker
Label TextNative peoples in the Eastern Woodlands used birchbark and moosehair for decorative and utilitarian purposes, but not in combination with each other. Around 1700 Ursuline nuns working at Quebec convents used the two materials together to create finely made objects such as containers, trays and model canoes. The nuns were well-schooled in French embroidery techniques and are thought to have been responsible for introducing floral imagery to the young Native women whom they were teaching at the convents. At the turn of the 19th century Wendat (Huron) women took over this art form and were widely known for their intricate work.Exhibition History"Art Des Indiens D'Amerique Du Nord Dans La Collection D'Eugene Thaw," Mona Bismarck Foundation, Paris, France, Somogy Editions D'Art, January 21, 2000 - March 18, 2000.
ProvenanceBelieved to have been given as a presentation piece to James Bruce, the 8th Earl of Elgin and 12th Earl of Kincardine, governor-general of Canada during his residency 1847-1854; descended in the Elgin family to the 11th Earl of Elgin and the 15th Earl of Kincardine, Dunfermline, Scotland
BibliographyVincent, Gilbert et al. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2000, p.61.
Fognell, Eva and Alexander Brier Marr, eds. Art of the North American Indians: The Thaw Collection at the Fenimore Art Museum, 2nd ed. Cooperstown, New York: Fenimore Art Museum, 2016, p. 43.
On View
On view
