The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

The Elizabeth Cole Butler Collection.

Gift of Myrtle Dietsche Fisher.

Western Apache includes the Cibecue, San Carlos, White Mountain, and Northern and Southern Tonto Apache groups who live in what is now Arizona. Many baskets from these peoples are simply identified as Western Apache, due to the difficulty of distinguishing between them stylistically. These peoples used twining exclusively when making large burden baskets. All other baskets, from shallow bowls to deep jars, are made by coiling. Coiled baskets are always decorated with boldly executed black designs against a white or tan background. The use of red - obtained from yucca root - as an accent color began after 1900 in an effort to increase the market value of the baskets to non-Native buyers. The most common type of design on bowls such as this one radiates from the center of the basket to the rim, often with figurative elements between the radiating lines.

Yavapai baskets are usually coiled, and the most common forms are trays, shallow bowls, and plaques. The radiating designs and figurative elements used on Yavapai baskets are similar to those used by Western Apache basket makers, and these similarities make it difficult to distinguish between Yavapai and Western Apache baskets. Sometimes, however, the designs on Yavapai baskets appear to be more precise and more symmetrical than those on Apache baskets.