The 1850s saw an uptick in Mi’kmaq artisans skillfully creating baskets, furniture, and even decorative elements for clothes for a burgeoning market of trade. While a lidded box was always a favoured item with buyers, the trunk shape that can be seen in this example was also loved, and provided an extra challenge; as the large, flat planes had the tendency to buckle and fail when made of birch bark, so a wooden liner was constructed to support the structure as a whole, and the decorative elements. This extra step aided in providing a larger canvas for the design work, further highlighting the skilled hands of the maker.  In this example, the sides of the box have a repeating, multi-coloured chevron design, as well as the rim of the lid. The top of the lid has a centrally framed design of repeating lines and shapes, while the white background is punctuated with sharp black lines.