Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

CAS Anthropology Collections Database


Catalog Number

CAS 0370-0817   CAS 0370-0817; Basket
Category Basketry
Object Name Basket
Culture Pomo
Global Region North America
Country USA
State/Prov./Dist. California
County Mendocino, Sonoma, Lake
Other Geographic Data unknown
Maker's Name Unknown
Date of Manufacture ca. 1930-1950
Collection Name Elkus Collection (Native American)
Materials Willow (Salix sp.) shoots; Sedge (Carex sp.) roots; Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) feathers; Mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos) feathers
Description Round basket with flat base and rounded sides that curve in at rim; Coiled on 3-rod foundation; Exterior is completely covered in featherwork in a banded pattern of 8 open diamond shapes in yellow meadowlark feathers on background of green mallard feathers. [In 1977 Pomo basketweaver Mable McKay, commented that weavers in the Ukiah area cut or trimmed feathers on baskets, such as this example, whereas weavers in Long Valley did not, unless the basket was passed outside their cultural group. Trimming the feathers diminishes or “breaks down” the power of the spirit, and Mable said she had never seen any basket in a museum collection that had not been “broken down.”]
Dimensions (cm) Height = 3.6, Rim Diam = 6.4, Max Diam = 8.0