Intricate Design

The basket is made from traditional materials such as black ash tree, sweetgrass and tufted horsehair while the stand and its carvings are from deer antlers (MSU Museum). The basket is large enough for women to gather various foods to eat. Taking a look closer shows the intricate braiding of the sweetgrass around the bottom and top of the lid. The use of the "bird-beak" weaving technique could pay homage to Mae Big Tree (she taught Ronni to weave) (Griffin). A hawk is one of the nine clans in the Onondaga tribe- another homage to her culture, past and future (Onondaga Nation). The overall diverse textures you get from looking at the basket just shows the time and care it took to create the basket.

To create the basket, one must find the black ash tree and cut it down into pieces. There are no short-cuts for the long process- it takes hard work! To see just how the process is done, click here.