Museum Expedition 1908, Museum Collection Fund

Earplugs. A red-feathered disk is surrounded by white beads and attached to a carved piece of bone. Pendants of abalone are suspended from the red disk.

Coiled tan basket with brown, triangle-like designs. The bark design elements are woven in briar root, which has limited distribution in California. While it is a difficult material to trim and work with it is a favorite material of Mary Azbil and she used it especially on baskets she made for family and friends. The design layout requires a great deal of planning and patience. Presentation baskets are invariably fancier than everyday containers and this basket appears to have never been used for food.

08.491.8679 basket is on the left. This basket has the plume or top-know motif on a cooking basket (bush-ka). These types of baskets with one or two patterns are found in the Maidu community of Mikchopdo at Chico CA. The design is valley quail and grape leaves (the diamonds).The quail pattern is weaver Wilson's best known basket design and can appear in different patterns: some called mountain quail and some, such as seen here, the more common valley quail, where the plume is curved and thick.

This large, globular basket was purchased from the proprietor of the hotel in Ukiah. According to Dr. Hudson, informant to Stewart Culin, the Museum's curator, it is called a "chi-mo", literally, "Son-in-law). This was given to a man by his mother-in-law or the nearest relative of the bride. After the gift of this basket they may not speak to or even look at each other again. Twined "dowry" baskets are among the largest of all Pomo baskets. The technique here is called lattice twining in which two flexible weft strands twist around an additional, rigid element as well as vertical warp strands. This considerably strengthens the basket. Most baskets with horizontal band designs have an intentional change to the pattern, called a dau. While exact significance is obscure it has been regarded as the doorway for the spirits to enter, inspect, and then leave the basket when it would be destroyed.

08.491.8983 basket is on the right. (See also 08.491.8679 description.) The cooking basket (bush-ka) has the design of the mountain-quail top-knot. This design was Wilson's best known design. The mountain-quail has a very long, straight top knot. Author Sally Bates suggests that this design may have been favored as the weaver's name, Oymutnee, meant "the sound made by a quail." Baskets such as this one seem to be characteristic of the Maidu community of Mikchopedo at Chico, CA.

This is a conical shaped basket with a stepped flag design in brown on natural fiber colored background. The shells and feathers are fastened to the exterior and extend out from basket. Although called a puberty basket it is thought that this basket was not necessarily used for puberty ceremonial. At the time it was collected it was thought that ceremony no longer was being practiced so such baskets were no longer being made for traditional practice. While it may have been intended for such, there is no physical evidence that it was ever used to hold water, and it is more likely that it was made for sale, an aestheticized version of a traditional form.

The swamp grass is natural. The grass is dye, dark blue, purple, red, and green. The raffia is natural.

The swamp grass is natural. The grass is dye, dark blue, purple, red, and green. The raffia is natural.

The swamp grass is natural. The swamp grass is dye, pink, and purple. The raffia is natural.