Chief's Blanket Item Number: 2991/1 from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Large beige wool blanket with a long wool fringe at one end. Six stripes of stroud cloth (four brown, one red and one dark blue) are incorporated into the body of the blanket (after weaving). The red stripe also has a green piece of fabric woven in with it. (The thick twisted fringe has lost some pieces.)

Narrative

From the Thorne hop farm collection, Brackendale. Collected by the previous owners at the turn of the last century. It was assumed the blanket was from the Ch'iyáḵmesh area, however if the blanket came from hop pickers, who normally moved around from farm to farm, the blanket could have originated from another Salish location. Partial funding for this acquisition came from a donation by Dr. B. Focht and funds from the estate of G.W. Alcock.

Specific Techniques

The blanket appears to have wooly dog hair woven into it, but the materials have not been tested. The coloured fabric plaited throughout may be from Hudson’s Bay blankets.

Item History

What

Name
Chief's Blanket
Identification Number
2991/1
Type of Item
blanket
Material
wool fibre, mountain goat wool fibre, dog wool fibre ? and dye
Overall
height 192.0 cm, width 121.5 cm

Who

Culture
Coast Salish: Squamish ?
Previous Owner
Seahawk Auctions
Received from
Seahawk Auctions (Seller), Museum of Anthropology Acquisitions Budget (Funding source), Estate of Gwendolyne Lottie Alcock (Funding source) and Brenda Focht (Funding source)

Where

Holding Institution
MOA: University of British Columbia
Made in
British Columbia, Canada
Collected in
Squamish, British Columbia, Canada

When

Creation Date
between 1850 and 1900
Collection Date
during 1900
Ownership Date
before January 5, 2013
Acquisition Date
on January 5, 2013

Other

Item Classes
textiles
Condition
fair
Accession Number
2991/0001