Beads come in many different shapes and colors. The beads, called heishi, featured on this necklace are made out of coconut shell. To make the coconut shell into beads, a hole was drilled using a pump drill like the one below: The individual pieces were then strung together and shaped […]
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Music is plays a huge part in every Native culture, though, each tribe has very different ways to express it. The photos above feature a rattle with a very unique shape; this rattle is flat! A common design to the First Nation’s Tribes of Canada, this flat rattle uses material […]
This mask from the Northwest Coast features one of the more fantastical beings in the Northwest Coast: Dzunuk’wa, or Wild Woman. In legend, she was twice as large as a human and rumored to carry a large basket of captured children who had wandered into her woods. She was also […]
While it looks like a woven doughnut, this ring shaped basket played an important role in the lives of many women in the Southwest. Water was often quite a distance from the home, so the women would have to gather water and materials each day. This was done with large […]
Birch bark has a wide variety of uses due to its unique nature; it peels off! Some European countries used it as paper! But many tribes used the birch as basket making material. Similar to the Swedish Easter basket, the basket featured above is woven out of strips of birch […]
How did natives make their beads? It is a question we often hear from visitors to the museum. The beads pictured above are made of clay, one of the easiest materials to use for bead making. Each tribe had access to different types of clay, so the particulars of the […]
One of the glorious things about the area, is the wildlife that we get to share it with. On June 10th, we had the pleasure of a box turtle digging a nest. She filled it with eggs and carefully put the dug soil back over the nest. We will wait […]
The Frisco Native American Museum & Natural History Center recently completed a new exhibit showcasing items that were confiscated by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. ” We were pleased when a representative from NOAA approached us to ask if we would […]
This doll was made by the Navajo people of the Southwest. Meant to be played with by children, dells are decorated to reflect the traditional dress of the time. Women, such as the one featured here, usually wear dresses or skirts made of velvet, cotton, or muslin. This doll has […]
Feather’s are a common sight at Native Powwow’s. Women dance with beautifully decorated fans made from long wing or tail feathers. Sometimes, vendors and dancers can be seen smudging with either a single, or a fan, of feathers from a variety of birds. The fan we have featured here today […]
When you look at native craft work over time, it is amazing to see how artisans incorporate newly available materials into their work. There are many items in modern fashion that use sequins, from purses to evening gowns and from hats to neck ties. But have you ever thought to […]
One of the baskets that you will find in our exhibit on Outer Banks natives is this exquisite eel basket. Eel was a staple food for tribes along waterways and these baskets, usually made from willow bark, were the most effective way at catching these slippery creatures. The eels swim […]