A WEST COAST POLYCHROME COILED UTILITY BASKET

COWLITZ

Details

A WEST COAST POLYCHROME COILED UTILITY BASKET
COWLITZ
Of tall, flaring cylindrical form, woven in cedar root, decorated on the exterior with imbrication, in dark brown and pale yellow and reddish brown, pattern composed of columns of linked square motifs, hide handles at top
15in. (38.1cm.) high

Lot Essay

"Many collectors and scholars contend that the Cowlitz River Indian women produced the perfect imbricated basket, with the most coils to the inch, the most stitches to a coil, and the greatest beauty of design....The Cowlitz-type basket usually was totally imbricated giving it a remarkable mosaic look. Typically, it was finished with a braided rim. Fashioned in wide vertical or diagonal bands, the imbricated patterns in zig zag, diamond, chevron, or checker configurations (Lobb, 1990, p. 95)." For more detailed information Cowlitz baskets see Lobb, 1990, pp. 95-97.

More from Important American Indian Art

View All