Pouch

Unknown

early 19th century · English wool, cotton, silk, glass beads · The American Wing

This rare pouch encapsulates nineteenth-century Native ingenuity and creative production. The figural design—made using nonlocal materials, including faceted glass beads in a curvilinear applique stitch—represents twin brothers from the origin stories of the Haudenosaunee, the sovereign Native American confederacy of Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora Nations. The materials date to the time of the American Revolution, when the confederacy divided its support between the American and British causes. The confederacy’s Grand Council governance system is still active today.

Artist

Unknown

Date

early 19th century

Medium

English wool, cotton, silk, glass beads

Culture

Onondowahgah/Seneca, Native American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Charles and Valerie Diker, 2016