Probably bowl shape, badly broken and crushed. Twined with hazel shoot warp, pine root weft, overlay of Xerophyllum tenax. Tag: "Wailacke or Wintum". Per Ralph Shanks: Close twined basket bowl, damaged and crushed. Crossed warp starting knot, overlaid with crossed conifer root wefts. Peeled shoot warps. Conifer root wefts, with a design overlay of bear grass and a black material, probably maidenhair fern. Starting at the starting knot there is three strand twining for 3/4 inch, followed by plain twining to the rim. The rim is trimmed with the warp sticks extending above the rim; however this may be due to missing wefts. The warps are often doubled. The overlay is double sided. The design is five horizontal bands of bear grass, with the first band having mixed black material and beargrass, and subsequent bands are beargrass only.
Donor:
May Boas
Collection place:
Northwestern California
Verbatim coll. place:
California
Culture or time period:
Wailaki and Wintu
Collector:
Grandparents of May Boas
Collection date:
ca. 1900
Taxon:
Xerophyllum tenax
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Bowl baskets and Twined weaving
Function:
1.0 Use not specified (Utensils, Implements, and Conveyances)
Accession date:
1980
Department:
Native California (archaeology and ethnology)
Dimensions:
diameter 17 centimeters
Comment:
Context of use: "Use unidentified because of condition