Wicker Basket, Possibly Wampanoag

Unknown artist

Wicker woven basket (a) with detached lid (b), fragments inside (c), and old label (d). Possibly Wampanoag. Similar construction found on image of basket on the website of the Peabody Essex Museum. The shape of the base is square and created with a plaited weave. The sides gently curve out. The rim is round, as is the lid. The lid is woven from radiating strips of wood that reach across the entire diameter. Handwritten note on paper in basket states: "Northern N. Eng., prob. MicMac c. 1925 A. McM 11/13/86" Handwritten tag states: "1027 1925 from Mrs. F B Dawney (?) Sources consulted (February 2020 by Kate Petterson): 1. Peabody Essex Website: http://explore-art.pem.org/object/native-american-art/E24275/detail 2. The Language of Native American Baskets from the Weavers' View (2003) by Bruce Bernstein 3.A Key into the Language of Woodsplint Baskets (1987) by Handman and McMullen 4. Basketmakers: Meaning and Form in Native American Baskets (1992) ed. Mowat, Morphy, and Dransart 5. The Baskets of Rural America (1975) by Gloria Teleki 6. Eastern Algonkian Block-stamp Decoration: A New World Original or an Acculturated Art (1947) by Frank Speck Sources Not Consulted: 1. Sarah Peabody Turnbaugh, MS and William A. Turnbaugh, PhD at University of Rhode Island. Consulted by sending images to them via email. They are experts on baskets and contributed to some of the books listed below.