Textiles (Needlework)
Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada, North America
1850-1880
Wood; Birch bark; Porcupine quill; Dye
Quillwork
1968.0065
Object Number1968.0065 |
Wall pocket (Matchsafe)
Textiles (Needlework)
Museum purchase
Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada, North America
1850-1880
Native American; Indigenous peoples
Wood; Birch bark; Porcupine quill; Dye
Quillwork
Hand-made
6 (H) , 5.375 (W) , 2.125 (D)
15.24 (H) , 13.653 (W) , 5.398 (D)
This dainty wall pocket once was brilliantly colored with bright blues, reds and yellows to shades of brown and cream, all muted now due to light exposure. The function is Anglo-American, a basket mounted on a wall designed to hold small, light items, but it was created by an artist of the Mi'kmaq culture using the traditional material of flattened porcupine quills-- a very early form of needlework in North America. The back piece is decorated with vertical quill bands arranged in alternating dyed colors to form geometric shapes and the pocket interior is lined with birch bark. Wall pockets like this were made for sale as tourist trade souvenirs in Nova Scotia and eastern Canada.