mocassins

mocassins

mocassins

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Introduction

A pair of centre-seam moccasins with silk cuffs, probably Great Lakes. Collected by G.C. Beltrami in Wisconsin in 1823. Around 1856, Beltrami's nephew donated several objects, including this one, to the Civic Library of Bergamo. Later the collection was transferred to the Museo Civico di Scienze Naturali, its current location.

Nation of Maker: American American
Summary of Source(s) for this Relative

Museum documentation.

Materials

tanned hide; thread, cotton; silk; porcupine quills

Techniques or Format

The moccasins have centre seams covered with quillwork, and cuffs covered with silk and decorated with embroidery.

Motifs and Patterns

Lozenges with double curve motifs at the points.

Other Notes

La tipologia del manufatto lo assimila alla Regione dei Grandi Laghi, come pure la decorazione realizzata con applicazioni di tessutp. Tra i gruppi indiani incontrati dal beltrami usavano piu' diffusamente decorazioni realizzate con applicazioni di tessuto i Sauk-Fox, i Winnebago e i Menominnee (Vigorelli p. 61)
[This type of the object is typical of the Great Lakes region. Among Indian groups encountered by Beltrami, those who most often used this type of decorations were the Sauk-Fox, the Winnebago and Menominnee]

Dimensions: 22 × 0 × 0 cm
Condition: Fair. There is quill loss on the moccasin vamps.
Catalogue, Accession or Reference Number: grasac_1371
Collection at Current Location: Collezione Beltrami
Date of Acquisition by the Institution: 1850s
Who the Institution Acquired the Relative or Heritage Item From: The Civic Library of Bergamo
Date Relative was First Removed or Collected from its Community Context: 1823
Collection Narratives and Histories

Collected by G.C. Beltrami from Wisconsin in 1823. Beltrami's collection catalogue states that around 1856, Beltrami's nephew donated several objects to the Civic Library of Bergamo, and later transferred to the Museo Civico di Scienze Naturali.

Exhibition History

The Beltrami Collection was exhibited in Florence in 1929 during the "Prima Esposizione Nazionale di Storia delle Scienze" (First National Exposition of History of Sciences"). In 1973, during a celebration of the Beltrami exhibit, Glauco Luchetti donated three objects from his own collection, which were located in Beltrami's last house in Filottrano, to the "Museo Civico E. Caffi". In 1987 the collection was used in the exhibit entitled "Missisippi 1823. Oggetti indiani raccolti da G. Costantino Beltrami" in the Galleria Lorenzelli in Bergamo.

Publication History

Beltrami's Collection Catalogue, p. 61.

Comment on Source of Exhibition & Publication Data

Leonardo Vigorelli, Gli Oggetti indiani raccolti da G.Costantino Beltrami, Civico Museo E. Caffi, Bergamo, 1987. Tanner, H. H. "Indian Villages c.1830: Wisconsin Region of Michigan Territory," Atlas of Great Lakes Indian History (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1987): 143-6.

Sources to Learn More

Leonardo Vigorelli, Gli Oggetti indiani raccolti da G.Costantino Beltrami, Civico Museo E. Caffi, Bergamo, 1987.

GKS Reference Number: 24415
Record Creation Context

This record was created by Emanuela Rossi after a trip funded by GRASAC to the Museo Civico E. Caffi in Bergamo, Italy in October 2008.

Record Creation Notes/Observations

Researchers present: Emanuela Rossi.

Approximate Place of Origin

43.6, -71.9

Source of Information about Places

In the Beltrami Collection Catalogue, the author, Leonardo Vigorelli, defines "Upper Mississippi" as the Cultural Area of Origin. He defines "Northeast" as the Geographic Area.