Western Apache Large Burden Basket [SOLD]

Among the American Indians, basket making was accomplished by women. The patience, creativity, and care given to this craft by Apache women provided a need for their daily use, but also satisfied the aesthetic needs of the people.  Baskets were used for daily needs of carrying water, cooking, and storage.  Basketry was used by the wandering Apache in the same manner that pottery was used by the sedentary Pueblo Indians.  The exquisitely decorated baskets soon caught the eyes of the non-Indian market, a fortunate event because it prolonged the art of basket weaving which might have died out by the 1920s when commercial utilitarian buckets and pans were available on the market.

Burden baskets were for gathering food, grains, berries, and even wood.  Burden baskets needed to be strong for such use.  When available, willow, mulberry, sumac, or cottonwood might be used.  The end period of abundant production for utilitarian use of burden baskets was the 1930s-1940s.  A revival occurred after World War II when tourists traveled again and were looking for souvenirs of their trips.  Burden baskets became popular because they were a unique shape and easily identified as Indian made.  

This burden basket is large in size and is very desirable.  It has a strap to facilitate hanging from a beam or rafter for maximum view.  Tin cones dangle from hide strips that allow the tin to swing and sing as the woman walks.  The design is one the basket maker chose by random or, more likely, one she learned from her mother.  Buckskin wraps around the rim, and strips run down the basket wall to intersect with that on the bottom of the basket.  Long strips hang from the base and are tipped with tin cones.  A strap, normally used to wrap around the carrier’s forehead, is now used for hanging the basket.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Western Apache Large Burden Basket is from a person in Albuquerque who inherited it from her mother’s collection.

Reference: Apache Indian Baskets by Clara Lee Tanner

TAGS: Native American Baskets, Apache, American Indians