Cherokee Traditions: From the Hands of our Elders
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Arts And Crafts: Double Chief's Daughters

Double Chief's Daughters pattern
Double Chief's Daughters pattern

This large upright storage basket was made by Lizzie "Nannie" Youngbird, a Cherokee woman of western North Carolina. Baskets such as these were made to store domestic goods, from dry foodstuffs to clothing. The natural aeration of the single weave allows the stored goods to remain dry. The basket is woven from rivercane that was dyed with walnut and bloodroot, plants native to the region. The walnut-dyed rivercane is dark brown; the fainter orange cane runs up from the bottom. The lip is marked with bloodroot and walnut stained bands in a linked Chain design. The design in the body of the basket is Double Chief's Daughters; the daughters represented by two small crosses within each interlocking square.


 

Cherokee Traditions:
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