mkak, box, birchbark and sweetgrass
mkak, box, birchbark and sweetgrass
mkak, box, birchbark and sweetgrass






This purse-shaped Anishinaabe mkak (box) is made from wiigwaas (birchbark) and bound and decorated with sweetgrass. It was collected by Amos H. Gottschall between 1871 and 1905. His collection was likely left to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANS) sometime before 1937. ANS formally gifted the collection to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in 1997, where this relative currently resides.
Label refers to the mkak as being "Chippewa" (Ojibwe).
The information in this record is based on museum documentation.
Read More About This Relative
birchbark; sweetgrass; black thread
Sweetgrass edging and trim decoration and handles. There are cedar bark tassels attached to the container with thin strings made from twisted pieces of inner cedar bark.
Purse shape in form.
Sweetgrass is braided to form flowers on the sides and top of the mkak.
These dates are based on Gottschall's collecting activities.
Provenance
This relative was collected by Amos H. Gottschall between 1871 and 1905. His collection was likely left to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANS) sometime before 1937. ANS formally gifted the collection to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in 1997, where this relative currently resides.
Gottschall, Amos H. Priced and Descriptive Catalogue of the Utensils, Implements, Weapons, Ornaments, Etc., of the Indians, Mound Builders, Cliff Dwellers: Typical Collections No. 2. 1909. (See: II 272)
About This GRASAC Record
Maker, Name unrecorded. Mkak, box, birchbark and sweetgrass. GRASAC ID 27039. University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 97-84-103A & 97-84-103B.
This information was gathered during a research visit to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, May 5, 2010.
This record was augmented by Joy Kruse on January 12, 2025.