Round leather mat with a beaded image of a doe and her fawn. The deer are both orange with black eyes. The fawn has white spots on its back and the doe has a white rump. The animals appear to be in a resting position, with their legs tucked underneath them. Charcoal guide lines can be seen under the beads in some spots. Visible on the back of the leather are knotted threads used to attach the beads to the front.

Painted hide wall hanging. The scene shows a dance, with a deer, bear, rodents, a turtle and other animals. The figures (except the turtle) have animal heads and human bodies, with tails, wearing traditional hide clothing. Headdresses and feathers adorn the heads of some dancers. One dancer plays a horn, while another holds a drum. The scene is outdoors, indicated by a tree stump, rocks and plants. Outlining the perimeter of the painting are red lines and blue dots in a rectangle. Guide lines can be seen throughout the painting. The edges are fringed. At bottom centre is a signature “THITH-HAK-KEY”. On the back: a circled “11” is drawn in orange on the top left; at bottom left is a sticker saying “Clothworkers’ Company. Bronze Star”.

Small round basket with a tight weave. The body (part a) has straight sides decorated with four identical images of small brown mice, tails curled to the front. Two thin lines of green encircle the bottom, with short lines of red and yellow between. The bottom is flat, with a thicker weave and a dark square in the centre created with a criss-cross style. The lid (part b) is round and slightly indented at centre, with a low profile and straight sides that are decorated with thin encircling rings in green with red and yellow. The top is embellished with a flower shape at the centre, and four small mice circling.

Small round basket with a tight weave. The body (part a) has straight sides decorated with images of beavers and ducks. The bottom is flat and undecorated, with a slightly thicker weave radiating out from the middle. The lid (part b) is round and slightly pointed at centre, with a low profile and straight sides decorated with thin, encircling rings in red and brown. The top is embellished with a flower shape at the centre point and three swimming ducks below.

Round drum with elk hide stretched over a wooden frame, pulled over the sides and secured at the back with fifteen hide ties. There are black and gray ink splash patterns on the face of the drum. There is a large translucent section near the edge. The ties are gathered in a Y shape at the centre of the back. A black string is tied to two of the hide strips on the back, for hanging.

Circular drum with hide stretched over a wooden frame and secured at the back with thin hide ties which are gathered in a cross pattern at the centre. There is a large, black, triangular-like splash pattern on the top of the drum, with many spatter marks. There is a black rectangular stamp on the outside of the wooden frame. A black string is tied to two of the hide strips on the back, for hanging.

Mask (a) with a heavy brow, protruding eyes and cheeks, large flared nostrils, and pursed lips. The mask is painted with black, dark green, dark red, and medium red with white lines and curvilinear designs. The mask is surmounted by a duck figure with wings extended and a duckling on its back (b). The duck figure has a green head with black glass eyes and a red mouth. The duck figure's neck and wings are articulated, and the mechanisms are hidden from view by white fabric that has been painted with designs in black, blue and brown. The duckling and the body and wooden segments of the duck figure's wings are painted with designs in green, red, blue and black.

Large, finely-woven, tan mat. There are fringe grass borders along two of the mat’s sides. The fringe along one side is accompanied by short, thick, vertical slits towards the middle of the mat. Above this is a decorative border of white stitching. Red strings attach small bundles of dried grass to the mat along this white stitching at regular intervals. Three groupings of red tipped feathers are sewn to the mat towards the middle. One group forms a circle, with their grey-brown insides at the centre and their red tips pointing outwards. There are two stamps in a corner: one is faint and circular, the other is dark and rectangular.

Wooden drumstick with a heavily beaded handle, with a white fur tip. The shaft is decorated with tightly packed rows of small clear plastic beads, with the base of the handle covered in rawhide, wrapped with sinew. The top half of the fur tip has been darkened with black ink. There is a circular metal loop screwed into the end of the handle.

Helen Cordero, Cochiti Pueblo, invented the concept of the Storyteller figure in 1964. She had been working with leather crafts but the poor income discouraged her. She felt her skills were not great enough to be a classical potter so when her cousin mentioned why didn’t she try doing figures , something that this Pueblo had done a great deal of in the 19th century, Cordero thought she could try. Effigies, small fetishes and charms made of stone, wood or clay are part of numerous ceremonies functioning to help maintain the balances between the natural, supernatural, and social order of things. But in the 19th century a commercial genre developed through encouragement of the Trading Posts. These pueblo sculptures were generally small figures of a singing woman holding a baby, a water bowl or platter; small, singing figures sitting cross-legged; or a standing male singing a song with one hand on their hip and another to their head. We have one such early male example from the late 19th century in our collection (02.257.2473.) When Cordero thought of a new subject for her first sculpture she envisioned her Grandfather. He was a famous storyteller and she had fond memories of him gathering all grandchildren around and relating stories to them as well as singing the songs associated with the characters. So Helen made two significant modifications in the singing mother tradition. She modeled a sitting male figure and placed a realistic number of children on him. Almost immediately her figures brought her acclaim and success. She won first, second and third prizes at the New Mexico State Fair, SWAIA’s first prize in Santa Fe, and first at the Heard Indian Market. She often did sculpture modeling demonstrations all over the country in Museums, international exhibitions and galleries. In fact her sculptures have generated and entire category of Native American pottery for which Cochiti Pueblo has become renowned. Helen continued making figures for over twenty years, always with a male figure, his eyes closed because he is thinking and he has numerous children scrambling all over him, in fact up to as many as 32.(This one has 14 children). Each large figure however is different wearing different clothes and jewelry, angled slightly differently, not a formulaic size, and each child was different in the same way. All are hand modeled. This storyteller, fashioned in 1987, is the last one Helen Cordero ever did and originally she was going to keep it. The collector visited her in her home and they got along so well she agreed to sell it. It is a large example done when Helen was at her very best. Strong, solid looking male figure, closed eyes, open mouth, necklace, headband, using colors Helen preferred of warm natural rust, black and cream, with delightful children - embodies all the very best of Helen’s artistry. The Museum actually does not have a story teller figure in the collection although our contemporary Roxanne Swentzell piece “Making Babies for Indian Market” is an ironic ‘take’ on this genre. This sculpture could be used in exhibitions featuring Native American or cross-cultural works: the human figure, pottery, invention of new genres, spoken language, storytelling, song, and children in art - the list if large. Susan Kennedy Zeller, Ph.D. Associate Curator of Native American Art