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Image

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  • Narrow cylindrical case with a white beaded body and blue and red stripes. Its top has a short red-striped cap with a loop. Yellow tassels hang from both ends.

Unknown Maker, Inunaina (Arapaho)

Awl case

Description

Maker

Unknown Maker, Inunaina (Arapaho)

Culture

Inunaina (Arapaho), Native North American

Title

Awl case

Year

ca. 1900

Medium

  • Leather with bead and feather embellishment

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • Leather with bead and feather embellishment

Materials

feather, quill feather, leather

Dimensions

Length: 53.3 cm (21 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Mrs. Jesse H. Metcalf

Object Number

19.102

Type

  • Leatherwork

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Being and Believing in the Natural World
Perspectives from the Ancient Mediterranean, Asia, and Indigenous North America
Oct 22, 2022 – Jun 04, 2023

Label copy

Pomo people traditionally hunted quail for sustenance in their homelands of northern California, often weaving their feathers into their tightly woven baskets. Adorned with beadwork, quillwork, tin cones, and dyed chicken feathers, the Inunaina case at right stored an awl, a pointed tool used for making clothing and moccasins. Indigenous people of North America have used wild bird feathers for adornment for thousands of years. Since chickens were introduced to tribal communities as food, their feathers have also been utilized.

Across centuries, the Chinese have prized kingfisher feathers for their brilliant colors, using them to embellish hairpins, earrings, and headdresses for aristocratic women. The demand for the iridescent feathers however, led to a great depletion of these birds.

-SB/WC

Use & Feedback

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Inunaina (Arapaho)
Awl case, ca. 1900
Leather with bead and feather embellishment
Length: 53.3 cm (21 inches)
Gift of Mrs. Jesse H. Metcalf 19.102

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We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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