Athabascan Birch Bark Folded Basket for Food & Water Collection & Storage Eskimo

Description

This basket comes from my personal collection.  I purchased this basket in Anchorage in 1971.
Birch bark baskets have been made for roughly 2000 years.  Bark is pulled in the Spring or early Summer taking only the outer layer
so the tree will not be killed.  The bark is cut, warmed to make it flexible, folded into shape and stitched together with split spruce
or willow roots, using an awl to make the holes.  Rims and reinforcing strips are made of red willow or cranberry wood.  Birch bark
is waterproof, strong and flexible.  Athapaskan women traditionally fashioned them into baskets of many shapes and sizes.  These
were used to collect water, berries and roots; to hold food and water inside the house, and to store food for winter.
This basket shows the dark interior of the bark on the outside of the basket.  The pale
exterior bark surface is on the
inside.
This basket may feel out of place among other more
prestigious basketry, but, to hold a surplus of food, the quiet time of
its
making, the ingenuous design, and its sheer simplicity all
contribute to the appreciation of this container as a work of art.
Measurements:  Across the top 10" x 8"     Sides approximately 6 1/2"    Across the bottom 9" x 5"
Questions??? Please ask before purchasing to avoid any misunderstandings.
Please view my other items in my "store".