the early Plains Indians. Probably the present-day Indian youth enjoys painting the warrior and the battle scene as much as did the men of an earlier generation. The women have been the artisans, faithfully recording in the embroidery and woven articles records of the more active lives of their warriors. As the feather symbolized the war bonnet, and the horse-track told of raids against the enemy, so, too, the tipi and the sacred pipe have place in the designs to tell of more peaceful pursuits. The "winter count," or Dakota calendar, prepared by painting on a skin a scene to depict the important events of each year, bears testimony to the love of the Sioux for a story told in graphic form. TYPES OF BAGS Though much time has been spent by the Sioux women in deco- rating costumes, tipis, and other large pieces, their beadwork is probably best known through the bags which they have always made in great variety. There are the small pouches or bags carried by the girls or women; the soft bags used in pairs called "a bag for everything"; the smoking outfits; strike-a-light pouches or pockets; pipe and tobacco bags used for formal social functions and ceremonies; gift bags worn around the neck; paint bags; saddle bags; bags for bow and arrows; medicine cases; knife sheathes or cases; and bags for gathering berries, and for storing dried fruit. The choice of skins and perfection of workmanship was determined by the use to which the bag was to be put. Bags made for use in ceremonials show the finest workmanship. The construction of the bag as well as the decoration was carefully done. The parfleche or rawhide bag was made by the Plains Indians of the West and Northwest for use in packing clothing, tools, and food, such as pemmican or dried meat, dried berries, and tallow. A parfleche is an envelope or folder made from a long, rectangular piece of rawhide. First the two long sides are folded together until they meet, then the short sides are folded in. These flaps are held together by lacings. The parfleche was sometimes cut out and shaped like a box, the sides of which were laced together with strips of leather. The parfleche of the Sioux is usually about twenty-four inches long by fourteen inches wide. Though made for service the parfleche came to be highly decorated. The Sioux parfleche was almost entirely covered by design. The whole design was laid out on the rawhide before it was folded into envelope form. The decoration was at first worked out by scraping away portions of the pigmented layer, leaving areas of lighter and darker shades. Later the rawhide was painted with the natural mineral and vegetable paints and dyes, interesting geometric designs being developed in each area. The parfleche decorations were usually dominated by the diamond, rectangle, or hour-glass pattern in a central position, with triangles symmetrically placed, and done in broad lines. A cylindrical rawhide bag was made to care for the war bonnet and other ceremonial objects. The parfleche bags were frequently decorated with such ornaments as fringe made from strips of skin, and porcupine quills. Since there is no longer use for the parfleche, old bags are sometimes cut up to serve as soles for moccasins. The hard sole has always been a characteristic of the moccasin of the Plains Tribes, having been used on all except the ceremonial or "love" moccasins. Many interesting examples of the old parfleche bags are to be seen in museum collections. The pole in front of the tipi of Sioux chief on which valued possessions were hung presented an attractive sight during days of encampment and tribal gatherings, for highly colored rawhide bags, stars with ribbon streamers, beaded balls, and other pieces of handsome ceremonial beadwork were displayed upon it. COLORS The colors used by the Sioux women convince even the casual observer of their deep appreciation of beauty. Undoubtedly they took much pleasure in the dyeing of porcupine quills and in the combination of the many colored beads used in embroidery work. The native Indian paints and dyes included red, black, white, and various shades of yellow and orange. Blue was much rarer, and green was almost non-existent, though it did sometimes occur. Until light blue came into use, white was almost universally used by the Sioux as the background color in their beadwork. When it is remembered that the decorated costumes, bags, shields, and other articles were to be used out-of-doors, the brilliancy of the colors and the striking contrasts are better appreciated. The symbolic meaning to be expressed was usually the guide in the use of colors, so that their combinations had real significance. The painted or dyed skins, the quills dyed in various colors, and the brightly colored beads offered mediums through which the tribal stories could be vividly told. WHITE, which was most commonly used for a background in Sioux beadwork, signifies snow or winter, the time of year when the men went on the war trail or achieved honors while the women carried on their handiwork at home. White and red might have reference to personal qualities. White might also refer to objects in nature, especially objects which were consecrated, the buffalo, the deer, the rabbit, or the plumage of birds. The chalk-white bead, rather than the milk-white bead, was chosen for use in Sioux beadwork. Blue is a favorite color with Sioux, but both blue and green beads are not known to have been used till brought to them by -the traders. Sky-blue has been used to some extent by the Sioux beadworkers as a background color, particularly on the yoke of the women's buckskin or doeskin dresses where it represents a lake or body of water in which the sky is reflected. Made from an entire skin, this yoke is very handsome. A characteristic of 回 the beadwork of the Assiniboin, who separated from the Sioux about 300 years ago, was the use of the dark-blue or purple background. NAVY BLUE or black represents victory, or enemies killed. In ceremonial, blue represents the sky, cloud, wind, the west, lightning, thunder, the moon, water, and day. Black represents the night. RED indicates wounds inflicted, if on a weapon; wounds received, if on a coat. Only one who had been wounded in fight had the right to wear the red feather. One or more red lines were used across the center of the beaded feather design to indicate the number of battles in which the warrior had taken part. Recovery of a warrior from serious wounds might be indicated by the color of his moccasins. On the moccasin for the left foot the portions on each side of the space or part between would be beaded in black, on that for his right foot in red. In ceremonial, red may indicate sunset, thunder, lightning, or forms of plant or animal life. Red lines were also used on the costume of the maiden who had reached maturity. Red lines or stripes used on articles for women were associated with women's functions and virtues and symbolized the good life. The red line is the symbol of the life span. A red border was sometimes painted around the lower part of the tipi to indicate that those who visited there would be fed, or that the tipi was one of a group in which a feast was to be held. A marriage custom still prevalent among some of the Sioux tribes is called "putting on the red.” Relatives of the groom bring to the bride gifts of leggins, moccasins, shawls, etc. The bedding is the special gift of the mother-in-law. GREEN represents the summer, the time of grass. The design which represents lightning is sometimes green to indicate the summer time, sometimes blue to represent the deadly effect of lightning. YELLOW is the symbol of the war horse because the tawny or dun-colored horses were especially prized. In ceremonial, yellow represents the dawn, or sunlight, cloud, or earth. SUMMARY Descendants of the old beadworkers who have been trained in early girlhood in the technique of the work continue (1932) to do good work on the ceremonial costumes that are worn with much pride when tribal observances are held, but their use of design has been limited to a slavish copying or an occasional adaptation of the old designs without knowledge of their significance. When new features have been introduced into the designs the work has been carried on with little regard for symbolism. While the elements of the Sioux designs continue to be used, modern beadwork no longer tells the tribal stories with the fidelity of the older pieces. Acquaintance with the characteristic designs of the Sioux can therefore be obtained only through study of their early work. BRIEF LIST OF MUSEUMS IN WHICH CHOICE COLLECTIONS OF INDIAN BEADWORK CAN BE FOUND American Museum of Natural History, New York City. Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, N. Y. Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio. Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colo. Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Ill. Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, Wis. Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, New York City. Museum of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, Calif. Museum of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff, Ariz. Museum of the State Historical Society of North Dakota, Bismarck, N. Dak. Museum of the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kans. Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa. National Museum, Washington, D. C. National Museum of Canada, Ottawa, Canada. Oklahoma Historical Museum, Oklahoma City, Okla. Peabody Museum of Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. Pettigrew Museum, Sioux Falls, S. Dak. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, P. C. Southwest Museum, Los Angeles, Calif. DECORATIVE ARTS OF THE SIOUX INDIANS Boas, Franz. Primitive Art. Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard University Buttree, Julia M. Rhythm of the Redman, A. S. Barnes and Co., N. Y. $5.00. 280 pages. A careful presentation of the art of the American Indian, in song, dance and decoration. Introduction, art section and illustrations by Ernest Thompson Seton. 100 illustrations, 30 in color. Hough, Walter. Racial Groups and Figures in the Natural History Building of the United States National Museum. Pages 624-627. Plates 21-27, and 30. Illustrate Indian costumes and manner of living and show application of designs to various articles. |