Belt
Belt
Belt
This relative, a beaded belt, is composed of bark, porcupine quills, sinew, printed cotton, and hide strips. The beading motifs include four Thunderbird images that can be seen framed by bold diagonal lightning lines. Although the origins of this relative are not certain, it is believed to be of Western Great Lakes origin and was collected by British Army officer Jasper Grant between 1800 and 1809 while he was stationed in Canada for military service.
This relative currently resides in the National Museum of Ireland.
This information was informed by the following resource: Phillips, Ruth. Patterns of Power: Kleinburg, On.: McMichael Canadian Collection, 1984.
This information was informed by the following resource: Phillips, Ruth. Patterns of Power: Kleinburg, On.: McMichael Canadian Collection, 1984.
Read More About This Relative
Bark; Porcupine quill,yellow, natural white, red, black, light blue; sinew; bark backing; printed cotton; hide strips.
Narrow, quill-wrapped strips of bark are sewn to backing with sinew; backing is a wide strip of bark wrapped diagonally with a piece of printed cotton; hide strips are attached to ends.
Four Thunderbird images can be seen framed by bold diagonal lightning lines.
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.
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 unrecorded. Belt. GRASAC ID: 846. National Museum of Ireland Collection, NMI 1902.348.
This record was augmented by Dana Murray on December 2, 2024. It was informed by GRASAC research notes and photographs collected during a site visit to the National Museum of Ireland [date and participants unrecorded].
42.107, -83.1132
This information was informed by the following resource: Phillips, Ruth. Patterns of Power. Kleinburg, On.: Patterns of Power, 1984. Fort Malden 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.