This small, elegant basket is made by the Nuu-chah-nulth people. Commonly referred to as Nootka, the Nuu-chah-nulth reside on the westcoast of Vancouver Island. While they are primarily for their woodworking, cedar canoes, and large multifamily housing; they also produce very fine basket work.
In the 1860’s, the Nuu-chah-nulth started producing baskets for the tourist trade. By the 1930’s, the market exploded with miniature baskets, such as the one pictured. Around that time period, the labor intensive twisted cedar bark construction was replaced with plaited bases that can be seen here
