Victorian-Style Woven Purse
This basket is somewhat unconventional, as it has a cylindrical, cone-like shape and looks like a handbag. The handbag itself is ten inches long, seven and a half inches tall, and six and a half inches wide. It is made from black ash and basswood, and dyed red and green along the soutache (looped braids) and tassels. The soutache design implies that it was made during the Victorian era when that detailing was popular (Olian 1998). The creator of this basket is unknown, other than that it probably came from the southwest Michigan. An unusual object, this basket’s purpose is somewhat unclear. Although it may look like a handbag, it lacks hinges on the bottom and is therefore difficult to open, meaning it wouldn’t function well as the purse it looks to be. One could speculate that this basket was made as an item to be sold to tourists, as the design of it may appeal more to their interests that those of various indigenous peoples.