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Leggings
Leggings
Leggings
These relatives, a pair of deerskin leggings, are composed of tanned deerskin, red ochre, and sinew thongs. The stripes of hide have been attached to the tops of the leggings as ties, and the red ochre is presumed to have been applied decoratively to the edges of the garment. The leggings were collected by British Officer Jasper Grant between 1800 and 1809 while he was stationed in the Great Lakes region. Based on their similarity to a drawing made in 1809 by Baroness Hyde de Neuville, the leggings have been identified as potentially typical of everyday dress worn by Hodenosaunee or Haudenosaunee men. The leggings also fit Jasper Grant's description of the "ordinary hunting dress" of men in his own writing.
This relative currently resides at the National Museum of Ireland.
The design of these leggings share similarities to Hodenosaunee clothing drawn from life by Baroness Hyde de Neuville in 1809.
Jasper Grant's grandson, Robert Ussher, donated these leggings as part of the Jasper Grant Collection in 1902.
Read More About This Relative
Tanned deerskin; red ochre; sinew, thongs
Strips of hide are attached to the tops of the leggings as ties. This fits Grant's description of the 'ordinary hunting dress' of men.
Red pigment is applied decoratively to the edges of the garment.
NS: these are front seam leggings, with the open seam and fringing was worn down the front of the leg
Jasper Grant served as commandant of Fort George in the Niagara Peninsula and of Fort Malden at Amherstburg opposite Detroit from 1800-1809.
Provenance
Jasper Grant (1762-1812), Anglo-Irish officer who spent 9 years in Canada between 1800-1809. Served as commandant of Fort George in the Niagara Peninsula and of Fort Malden at Amherstburg opposite Detroit. It is likely that his wife, Isabella Grant, played a significant role in the collection of items given her close relationship to Madeline Askin Richardson, the daughter of a prominent fur trader and merchant with extensive ties to the surrounding Indigenous communities.
GRASAC researcher notes from the research trip to the National Museum of Ireland on July 23, 2010.
In 1984-1985 the Jasper Grant Collection was featured in a special travelling exhibition for the Ontario bicentennial, which was organized by the McMichael Canadian Collection and entitled "Patterns of Power."
Phillips, Ruth. Patterns of Power. Kleinburg, ON: McMichael Canadian Collection, 1984.
Philips, Ruth B. (1986-87). “Jasper Grant and Edward Walsh: the Gentleman-Soldier as Early Collector of Great Lakes Indian Art.” Journal of Canadian Studies 21(4): 56-71.
About This GRASAC Record
Maker, Name unknown. Leggings. GRASAC ID: 25784. National Museum of Ireland, 1902.308.
This record was augmented by Dana Murray on August 13, 2024. It draws on information recorded during the GRASAC research trip to the National Museum of Ireland on July 23, 2010. Participants included Alan Corbiere, Ruth Phillips, Crystal Migwans, and Nicholas Stolle, who were assisted by Padraig Clancy and Emma Crosby.
42.107, -83.1132
This information was informed by the following resource: Phillips, Ruth. Patterns of Power. Kleinburg, On.: Patterns of Power, 1984. Fort Walden is identified on the map as a possible origin for this relative, but this reflects only one place where the relative may have lived. It is not a known place of origin; it is only one location associated with where the collector, Jasper Grant, served in the British Army.