UNIDENTIFIED TLINGIT ARTIST, CHILKAT KWAAN, Open Basket with Three Chilkat Faces and Colourful Arrows as Motifs, c. 1900

UNIDENTIFIED TLINGIT ARTIST, CHILKAT KWAAN

Open Basket with Three Chilkat Faces and Colourful Arrows as Motifs, c. 1900

spruce root, grass, maidenhair fern stem, and dyes, 4.5 x 6.25 x 6.25 in (11.4 x 15.9 x 15.9 cm)

LOT 56
ESTIMATE: $2,500 — $3,500

Tlingit spruce root weaving is a laborious art form that requires deep ecological knowledge and a huge investment of time in gathering and processing the roots before weaving can even...

Tlingit spruce root weaving is a laborious art form that requires deep ecological knowledge and a huge investment of time in gathering and processing the roots before weaving can even begin. The finished product is a two-strand twined textile that becomes watertight when wet and can be used for hats, drinking cups, and even cooking baskets. This fine basket combines spruce root weaving with three false-imbricated Chilkat faces and repeating columns of alternating green and orange triangles. Most spruce root baskets tend to feature geometric designs rather than the iconic central faces from Chilkat robes, so this basket is quite unusual.

CWS

Provenance

An Important Private Collection, Camano Island, WA;
by descent in the family to present Private Collection.

Inquire

Artworks

JOIN

Cookie preferences

Join our mailing list