Decorative Art of Indian Tribes of Connecticut

Decorative Art of Indian Tribes of Connecticut

A fortunate phase of the research work among the Indians of New England has recently led to the extension of our knowledge of the decorative art of the eastern Algonkin tribes. This has been made possible by the discovery of specimens, and by information furnished by several aged Indians of the Mohegan and Niantic tribes of eastern Connecticut.[1] During several visits in the winter of 191213, Mrs. Henry Mathews (Mercy Nonsuch), the only full-blooded survivor of the Niantic Indians, formerly inhabiting the shore of Long Island sound around the mouth of Niantic river, and the Mohegans, Cynthia Fowler, Charles Mathews, and the late Fidelia Fielding, the last person who could speak the Mohegan language, all contributed towards the material here presented.[2] The principal field of decoration among the Mohegan and Niantic, so far as we can now tell, seems to have been chiefly in paintings on baskets. Decorative wood-carving upon household utensils and sometimes upon implements was also quite common. Bead-work, on the other hand, appears to have been a secondary activity. A short account of the basket-making itself is required, before the basket decorations are described. For household and gardening purposes these people have developed a few types[Pg 2] of baskets (manuda[3] receptacle) varying in shape, size, and weave. The most characteristic forms seem to have been rectangular baskets a foot or so in length, two-thirds as high, and of proportionate width, and without handles, though often provided with covers. These are the household storage articles (Plates I and II). For carrying garden products, and for hand use in general, are somewhat smaller round-bottomed baskets, with handles or bails, ranging in width from 4 inches up to baskets with a capacity of half a bushel (Plates III and V). Then we have the type known, among the Indians from Nova Scotia to the Southern States, as melon, rib, or gizzard baskets (Plate III, upper right hand corner), provided with bails, and also used for carrying. And, lastly, there are the open work baskets, some of which are small fancy articles, while others are used as strainers (Plates IV and VI). These fall under the general type of open hexagonal twill baskets. All these types, of course, are commonly found among practically all the tribes of the Atlantic coast, varying only in the minor details of weave at the rim and the bottom. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 46578
Author: Speck, Frank G. (Frank Gouldsmith)
Release Date: Aug 13, 2014
Format: eBook
Language: English