garters

garters

garters

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Introduction

A pair of finger-woven garters with beadwork design throughout. From the Eastern Great Lakes region, likely Hodenosaunee or Anishinaabe, and made in the 18th to early 19th century. These garters are part of a collection loaned to the Pitt Rivers Museum by Colonel Shirley in 1952 and purchased from his son, Major Shirley in January 1966.

Nation of Maker: Anishinaabe Hodenosaunee/Haudenosaunee
Nation of Origin

This style of garter is often from the Eastern Great Lakes region, possibly as south as Virgina.

Date Made or Date Range: 1700s to 1840s
Summary of Source(s) for this Relative

Pitt Rivers Object catalogue and observations made by the GRASAC research team.

Materials

woolen yarn, red, green and blue/black ; pony beads, white glass; metal cones; deer hair, dyed red; porcupine quills, white, red and black.

Techniques or Format

Finger woven with red and green woolen yarn, decorated with interwoven white glass pony beads. Metal cones containing red dyed deer hair hang from tassels of yarn wrapped with red, black and white porcupine quills. There is a tiny bit of blue or black wool in one tassel.

Motifs and Patterns

Parallel triple lines of zig zags forming a central line of diamonds.

Other Notes

Conservation repair was not done by Heather Richardson, conservator, PRM. The garters had been sewn together while in the Shirley collection to make a single long item, and were separated in preparation for the GRASAC visit.

Dimensions: 65 × 7 × 0 cm
Condition: Fair, evidence of a poor repair job.
Reasons for connecting this relative with particular times, materials, styles and uses

This style of garter was made in the 18th century to early 19th century.

Current Location: Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, United Kingdom
Catalogue, Accession or Reference Number: 1952.5.06
Collection at Current Location: Shirley Collection
Date of Acquisition by the Institution: 1966
Who the Institution Acquired the Relative or Heritage Item From: Colonel Shirley via Major Shirley
Date Relative was First Removed or Collected from its Community Context: before 1952
Collection Narratives and Histories

This item is part of a collection loaned to the Pitt Rivers Museum by Colonel Shirley in 1952 and purchased from his son, Major Shirley in January 1966. There is a possibility that this coat was formerly owned by James Bisset and acquired by Colonel Shirley through the Leamington Museum. (Pitt Rivers Museum Object Catalogue entry)

Publication History

Mowat, Linda. "Painted Coats for a Coronation? (Research Notes)," Journal of Museum Ethnography 8 (1996): 109-110.

GKS Reference Number: 27110
Record Creation Context

This record was created as part of a Great Lakes Research Alliance for the Study of Aboriginal Arts and Cultures (GRASAC) research trip to the Pitt Rivers Museum and British Museum, December 8-22 2007, funded by a grant from the International Opportunities fund of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Record Creation Notes/Observations

researchers present: Heidi Bohaker (HB), Al Corbiere (AC), Stacey Loyer (SL), Janis Monture (JM), Laura Peers (LP), Ruth Phillips (RP), Anne De Stecher (AS), Cory Willmott (CW).

Approximate Place of Origin

43.0703, -80.1184

Source of Information about Places

Pitt Rivers Museum Catalogue Accession book entry.

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