free for about two inches, when they are brought together and plaited
with remarkable neatness into a string border. As if to convey to the
curious investigator of modern times a complete knowledge of their
weavers' art, the friends of the dead deposited with the body not only
the fabrics worn during life but a number of skeins of the fiber from
which the fabrics were probably made. This fiber has been identified as
that of the _Cannabis sativa_, or wild hemp. Two of the skeins are shown
in plate V.
The presence of these unworked materials makes it probable that the
individual burned was a female, for the distaff and the loom have been
and are universal emblems of the practical enslavement of that sex.
[Illustration: FIG. 8.--Border of bag.]
A small but very instructive group of burial fabrics is preserved in the
National Museum. These specimens were found with a desiccated body in
1877 in a cave 8 miles from Mammoth cave, Kentucky. They consist of a
number of bags and other articles woven in the usual styles of bast and
hemp. Nearly all of the articles are worn or fragmentary, but the fiber
is wonderfully preserved and the original colors are as fresh as if the
burial had taken place but yesterday. There are three wide-mouthed,
shallow bags, resembling the one from Tennessee illustrated in plate V.
The largest is 34 inches long when closed, and 15 inches deep. Both web
and woof are of bast. There is a border of open work bound by a plaited
band as seen in figure 8, and the manner of weaving is identical with
that shown in that figure. The second bag is 22 inches long and 16 deep.
The web is of bast, the woof of hemp. The smaller specimen is 14 by 9
inches and is made exclusively of hemp, and is thus much more pliable
than the others. The small remnant of a larger bag shows a web of heavy,
plaited bast strands resembling the specimen impressed on pottery and
shown in _a_, plate IX. Besides these pieces there is a bit of heavy,
compactly woven stuff, resembling the broad part of a sling, which shows
traces of a geometric pattern, and a piece of flattish rope 12 feet long
and 12 inches broad plaited very neatly of hempen twine.
Among a number of cave relics from Kentucky donated to the Museum by Mr.
Francis Klett, are some textile articles. Among these is a sandal or
moccasin woven or plaited very neatly of bast. It is shown in figure 9.
Prof. F. W. Putnam and other explorers of these caves have obtained
numerous textile articles of interest.
[Illustration: BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. V FRAYED
BAG AND SKEINS OF HEMP FIBER.]
CHARRED REMAINS OF FABRICS FROM MOUNDS.
That the well-preserved fabrics just illustrated represent fairly the
textile work of the mound-builders is practically demonstrated by the
evidence furnished by the mounds themselves. From hundreds of sources
come the same story; and it is not necessary here to enter into any
elaborate discussion of the subject or to multiply illustrations. I
present in plates VI and VII specimens of mound fabrics which, since
they were burned with the dead, undoubtedly formed part of the clothing
of the living or were wrappings of articles deposited with the bodies.
These coarse cloths may be considered as fairly representing the weaving
of the mound-builders. There are among them some finer examples of
weaving than those obtained from the caves and shelters of Tennessee and
Kentucky, but there is nothing specifically different in material or
methods of combination, and there is nothing whatever to suggest a
higher stage of culture than that of the historic Indian.
[Illustration: FIG. 9.--Sandal or moccasin from a Kentucky cave.]
The fiber is quite fine and is more probably of hemp than of the bark of
trees. The strands are generally well twisted and even, the twist being
in most cases to the right, or as if twisted on the thigh with a
downward movement of the right-hand, the thread being held in the left.
As in the case of cave fabrics as well as the work of the modern peoples
of the region, the weaving is nearly all in the twined style, of which
there are two varieties; one in which each strand of the web is in turn
inclosed simply by the woof twisted in pairs, and the other in which
alternate pairs of the web strands are inclosed by the twined pairs of
the woof. Cloths woven in the first method are often quite close, as the
woof threads are readily pressed or pounded down on one another entirely
hiding the web strands, giving a fabric of much compactness and
strength. The second variety is usually somewhat open and net-like, and
very often the pairs of twined woof strands are placed far apart, as
shown in several of the illustrations given in this paper. The finest
mesh observed is in the first of these styles, and includes about twenty
intersections to the inch.
From the Ohio mounds also there are examples of plain as well as of
diagonal interlacing. In appearance the cloth is much the same as that
done in the twined style. In a few cases a border or selvage of very
simple construction is seen. A looped margin for the passage of a
gathering cord is common.
In plate VI a number of bits of charred cloth are shown; being quite
black the camera fails to give them with clearness, but the drawings
presented in plate VII serve to make clear all details of the strands
and their combination. The charring has taken place in cremating the
dead, in the burning of offerings or through accidental subjection to
heat. In some cases very considerable portions of the cloth are found,
but it is usually in a very fragile state and little has been preserved.
Specimens preserved in this way are obtained from a large area,
including the Ohio and a large portion of the Mississippi valleys.
FABRICS PRESERVED BY CONTACT WITH COPPER.
The preservation of woven textures through association in burials with
implements or other articles of copper is of common occurrence. Our
museums contain many examples of copper celts retaining on their
surfaces portions of cloth so well preserved that the fibers retain much
of their original strength as well as color. In plate VIII three
examples are shown from a mound near Davenport, Iowa, and a fourth from
a mound near Savannah, Georgia. The fabrics on _a_ and _b_ are of the
twined style and, although occurring 800 miles apart, are identical in
every respect. The cloth on _c_ is very closely woven and has the
appearance of simple interlacing. The finest piece of work that has come
to my notice is a bit of cloth from a mound in Pike county, Ohio. It has
from thirty-five to forty strands to the inch, and looks much like
coarse twilled goods. It is woven in the twined style, however, and is
therefore of native origin. It was preserved by contact with a large
number of copper beads, four of which are shown in the cut, figure 10.
[Illustration: FIG. 10.--Fine, closely woven cloth preserved by contact
with copper beads.]
Traces of basketry are rarely preserved either by charring or by contact
with copper. Matting is occasionally preserved in these ways. Figure 11
illustrates a piece of rush matting found fixed to the surface of a bit
of copper in a mound near Augusta, Georgia.
[Illustration: BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VI
CHARRED CLOTH FROM MOUNDS IN OHIO.]
The weaving of the hair of many species of quadrupeds, the buffalo, the
opossum, the rabbit, etc., is noted by a number of authors, and a few
specimens of haircloth have been recovered from mounds. Mr. Henry R.
Howland found in a mound near Alton, Illinois, two varieties of cloth
preserved by contact with a copper ornament representing a
turtle-shell; they are described as follows:
Closely fitting over the outer surface of the copper shell
is, first, a woven cloth of a vegetable fibre, similar in its
general character to the outer matting above described, but
of a stronger and better preserved fibre, apparently more
like that which forms the woven coating of the Davenport
axes. This is covered in turn with a softer, finer fabric,
now of a dark-brown color, formed of twisted strands, laid or
matted closely together, though apparently not woven. The
material of which these strands are formed proves, under
microscopic examination, to be animal hair.[56]
[Illustration: FIG. 11.--Small portion of rush matting preserved by
contact with copper.]
An illustration of ancient split cane matting is presented in figure 12.
The specimen was obtained from Petite Anse island, near Vermilion bay,
southern coast of Louisiana, and a photograph was presented to the
Smithsonian Institution in 1866, by J. F. Cleu. The following
description, as given by Prof. Joseph Henry, appears on the label
attached to the specimen:
This fragment of matting was found near the surface of the
salt, and about 2 feet above it were remains of tusks and
bones of a fossil elephant. The peculiar interest in regard
to the specimen is in its occurrence in situ 2 feet below the
elephant remains, and about 14 feet below the surface of the
soil, thus showing the existence of mart on the island prior
to the deposit in the soil of the fossil elephant. The
material consists of the outer bark of the common southern
cane (_Arundinaria macrosperma_), and has been preserved for
so long a period both by its silicious character and the
strongly saline condition of the soil.
FABRICS IMPRESSED ON POTTERY.
It was a common practice among the aborigines to employ woven fabrics in
the construction and ornamentation of earthenware. Impressions were thus
left on the clay, and by baking these were rendered as lasting as if
engraved on stone.
From no other source do we obtain so wide a range of fabrics. The
fabric-marked vases and sherds are obtained from mounds, graves, and
village sites all over the country. There is not a state within the
Mississippi or Atlantic drainage that does not furnish some example of
the preservation of native fabric impressions on earthenware. The
perfection with which every character of these textures is preserved is
well shown in a number of the figures here introduced.
A somewhat extended study of this subject was published in the Third
Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, and illustrations of nearly
all the styles of weaving were given. As indicated by subsequent
investigations, a number of slight inaccuracies of analysis and drawing
occur in that paper, but they are of such minor importance that detailed
correction is unnecessary.
[Illustration: FIG. 12.--Split-cane matting from Petite Anse island,
Louisiana.]
It would seem that imprints of cloth woven in the plain interlaced style
appear to be quite rare, although it is difficult, from the impressions
on clay, to distinguish this from other forms when the threads are
closely impacted. In somewhat rare cases the interlacing is so arranged
and alternated as to give diagonal effects as in a specimen shown in
figure 13. These effects are peculiar to the interlaced fabrics, not
being produced in twined or netted work.
It has been supposed that vessels of clay were often modeled in baskets,
and that the native earthenware preserved numerous impressions of
baskets. On closer analysis these impressions turn out to be the
application of pliable cloths, or of cords singly or in groups, or of
stamps covered with textiles or having geometric textile-like patterns
engraved on them. I can not recall a single example from eastern United
States in which it is entirely clear that the clay vessel was modeled in
a basket. The impressions of basket work occasionally seen are only
partial, having been applied after the vessel was practically finished.
[Illustration: BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VII
DRAWINGS OF CHARRED FABRIC FROM MOUNDS.]
I present in figure 13, a small earthen vessel from a mound in North
Carolina, the entire exterior surface of which is marked with a fabric,
a pliable cloth or bag woven in the twined styled. The impressions are
not the result of a single application of the texture, but consist of
several disconnected imprintings as if the hand or a paddle covered with
cloth had been used in handling the vessel or in imparting a desired
finish to the surface.
[Illustration: FIG. 13.--Fabric-marked vase from a mound in North
Carolina.]
Specimens of diagonal fabrics, restored from potsherds, are given in
figures 14 and 15. The first is a very neatly woven diagonal from the
ancient pottery of Polk county, Tennessee. Two series of cords have been
interwoven at right angles to each other, but so arranged as to produce
the diagonal effect. One series of the cords is fine and well twisted,
the other coarser and very slightly twisted. The second is a piece of
matting restored from the impression on a small piece of pottery
collected in Alabama. It was probably made of rushes or heavy blades of
grass.
[Illustration: FIG. 14.--Diagonal fabric, ancient pottery of Tennessee.]
Twined weaving prevails in the fabrics impressed on pottery as in those
from all other aboriginal sources. An example of the simplest form,
obtained from a small fragment of pottery found in Polk county,
Tennessee, is shown in figure 16. Two series of threads are interwoven
at right angles, the warp being arranged in pairs and the woof singly.
[Illustration: FIG. 15.--Fabric from the ancient pottery of Alabama.]
At each intersection the pairs of warp threads are twisted half around
upon themselves, inclosing the woof threads and holding them quite
firmly, so that the open net-like effect is well preserved even under
strain or in long continued use. There are many varieties of this form
of fabric resulting from differences in size and spacing of the threads.
These differences are well brought out in the succeeding figures.
[Illustration: FIG. 16.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Tennessee.]
[Illustration: FIG. 17.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Tennessee.]
In figure 17 we have a characteristic example of this fabric, obtained
from a fragment of pottery from a mound at Sevierville, Tennessee.
[Illustration: BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. VIII
COPPER CELTS WITH REMNANTS OF CLOTH.]
The impression is quite perfect. The cords are somewhat uneven, and seem
to have been only moderately well twisted. They were probably made of
hemp fiber. It will be observed that the threads of the web are placed
at regular intervals, while those of the woof are irregularly placed. It
may be noticed that in one case the woof has not been doubled, the
single thread having, as a consequence, exactly the same relation to the
opposing series as corresponding threads in simple interlacing. The
impression, of which this is only a part, indicates that the cloth used
in shaping the vessel was considerably distorted when applied to the
soft clay.
[Illustration: FIG. 18.--Twined fabric from ancient salt vessel,
Illinois.]
[Illustration: FIG. 19.--Twined fabric from ancient salt vessel,
Illinois.]
Nowhere else are found so many fine impressions of fabrics on clay
vessels as in the ancient salt-making localities of the Mississippi
valley. The huge bowls or vats used by the primitive salt-maker have
generally been modeled in coarse, open fabrics, or have had cloths
impressed upon them for ornament. In figures 18 and 19 fine examples of
these impressions are given. The latter engraving illustrates a specimen
in which every detail is perfectly preserved. Only a small portion of
the original is shown in the cut. It is noticeable that the cords are
quite heavy and well twisted, although the spacing is somewhat
irregular.
[Illustration: FIG. 20.--Twined fabric from a piece of clay, Arkansas.]
[Illustration: FIG. 21.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Tennessee.]
The example given in figure 20, impressed on a fragment of clay from
Arkansas, has an ornamental border produced by looping the cords of the
web, which seem to have been five in number, each one passing over four
others before recrossing the frame. A specimen showing a somewhat
different border is given in figure 21.
[Illustration: FIG. 22.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Missouri.]
The interesting specimen illustrated in figure 22 was obtained from a
small fragment of pottery found in Ripley county, Missouri. The
combination of the two series of strands clearly indicates the type of
fabric, the twisted cords of the woof being placed very far apart. The
warp is of braid formed by plaiting strands of untwisted fiber, probably
bast. All the details are shown in the most satisfactory manner in the
clay cast.
[Illustration: FIG. 23.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Carter
county, Tennessee.]
In figure 23 we have a similar fabric closely woven or impacted. I have
made the drawing to show fillets of fiber appearing at the ends; these
do not appear in the impression. It is highly probable, however, that
these fillets are plaited bands, as in the preceding example. They are
wide and flat, giving somewhat the effect of basket-work of splints or
rushes.
[Illustration: FIG. 24.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Tennessee.]
[Illustration: FIG. 25.--Twined fabric from ancient pottery, Tennessee.]
Another variety of the twined fabrics, distinguished by peculiarities in
the combinations of the threads, is illustrated in figures 24 and 25.
The threads of the warp are arranged in pairs as in the specimens
already described, but are twisted in such a way as to inclose two of
the opposing series instead of one, each succeeding pair of warp threads
taking up alternate pairs of the woof threads. Figure 25 is from a small
piece of pottery exhumed from a mound on Fain island, Jefferson county,
Tennessee. The threads of the woof are quite close together, those of
the web being far apart.
[Illustration: FIG. 26.--Twined fabric, with patterns, Ohio valley.]
[Illustration: FIG. 27.--Net from ancient pottery, District of
Columbia.]
That the native love of decoration had a marked influence on the
weavers' art in its simplest and rudest as well as higher forms is well
evinced even in the meager vestiges brought to light by researches in
the mounds. Decorative borders and fanciful combinations of strands are
shown in some of the preceding cuts, and figure 26, copied from a
pottery fragment obtained in the Ohio valley, indicates a more ambitious
attempt at embellishment. The fabric was evidently of ornate design and
the execution excellent.
[Illustration: BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY THIRTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. IX BITS
OF FABRIC-MARKED POTTERY, WITH CLAY CASTS OF SAME]
Plate IX is intended to convey a clear notion of the nature and
appearance of fabric-marked pottery and of the manner of securing
positive impressions in clay. Three bits of pottery from Illinois are
placed at the left, and the three casts appear at the right. All
illustrate open fabrics of comparatively simple pattern done in the
characteristic twined style.
[Illustration: FIG. 28.--Net from ancient pottery, North Carolina.]
Nets were in use by the Indians of Florida and Virginia at the time of
the discovery, and the ancient pottery of the Atlantic states has
preserved impressions of innumerable specimens. The piece shown in
figure 27 is from a small fragment of pottery picked up in the District
of Columbia. The impression is so perfect that the twist of the cord and
the form of the knot may be seen with ease. Most of the examples from
this locality are of much finer cord and have a less open mesh than the
specimen illustrated. The net illustrated in figure 28 is from a
specimen of North Carolina pottery. Netting of this class was still in
use among the natives of the Chesapeake region when the English colonies
were founded.
The lesson of the prehistoric textile art of eastern United States is
simple and easily read, and goes far to round out the story of native
occupation and culture. Colonial records furnish definite knowledge of
the woven fabrics and weaving of the nations first encountered by the
whites. Graves, mounds, and caves give us an insight into the
pre-Columbian status of the art, and evidence furnished by associated
industries which happen to echo features of the textile art contribute
to our information. Charred cloths from the great mounds are identical
in material, combination of parts, and texture with the fabrics of the
simple savage. Cloths preserved by contact with copper implements and
ornaments characteristic of the art of the builders of the mounds do not
differ in any way from the humble work of the historic peoples. All tell
the same story of a simple, primitive culture, hardly advanced beyond
the grade separating the savage from the barbarous condition.
[51] Nat. and Abor. Hist, of Tenn., John Haywood. Nashville,
1823, pp. 163-165.
[52] Ibid., p. 62.
[53] Trans. and Coll. Amer. Antiq. Soc. Worcester, 1820, vol.
1, pp. 318, 319.
[54] Histoire de la Louisiane. Du Pratz. Paris, 1758, vol. II,
p. 191.
[55] Histoire de la Louisiane, Du Pratz. Paris, 1758, vol. II,
p. 193.
[56] Recent Archæological Discoveries in the American Bottom.
Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences, March 2,
1877, p. 208.
INDEX
ADAIR, JAMES, on Cherokee basketry 16
weaving 23
Indian method of spinning 23
ALABAMA, Fabric-impressed pottery from 39
APOGYNUM, Indian use of, in weaving 23
ARKANSAS, Fabric-impressed pottery from 42
ART, textile, Memoir on 3-45
BAGS, Woven, described 33, 34
BARK clothing 17
fiber used in weaving 23, 24, 25
Mulberry, used for fringe 32
used in embroidery designs 28
net making 27
spinning 22
BARTRAM, W., on council houses of mats 19
on sieve of Georgia Indians 17
BASKETRY discussed 15
Earthenware derived from 11
Lack of pottery modeled from 38
rarely preserved by charring 36
BEADS used in embroidery 28
BILOXI, Mortuary customs of the 21
BRACKINRIDGE, H. M. on Tennessee mortuary customs 21
BRIDGES of wattle work 13
BUTEL-DUMONT, G. M., on Louisiana indian embroidery 28
featherwork 28
mortuary mats 21
sieves 17
Mobilian wattled biers 14
Natchez dwellings 14
rafts of poles and canes 15
CAGES of wattle work 13
CALIFORNIA INDIANS, Stone chipping by 41
CANES used for matting 18
CAROLINA INDIANS, Textile fabrics of 14, 16
CAVES, Fabrics preserved in 29
CHARRING, Fabrics preserved by 35
CHASE,--, on ceremonial knives 16
CHEROKEE, Basketry of the 16
Weaving by the 23
CHOCTAW, Woven pouches and blankets of the 24
CLAWS of birds used with embroidery 28
CLEU, J. F., Split cane matting found by 37
CLOTH. Methods of manufacture of 22
CONTI, a Georgia Indian food 17
COPPER as a fabric preservative 36
used in embroidery 28
CORDAGE, Primitive manufacture of 21
COSTUMES of Louisiana indian women 32, 33
COTTON shawls of lower Mississippi 25
CRADLES, Textile, described 18
CRESSON, H. T., Remains of fish-weirs found by 15
DELAWARE, Remains of weirs in 15
DE SOTO, H., Expedition of 25
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Fabric-impressed pottery from 44, 45
DU PRATZ, LE P., on Louisiana basketry 16
cane rafts 15
clothing 22, 25, 32, 33
dyes 20
embroidery 28
feather work 27
nets 27
sieves 17
textile cradles 18
DWELLINGS of wattle work 13
DYEING of basketry by the Cherokee 16
embroidery materials 28
DYES, use of, by Louisiana Indians 20
ELVAS, KNIGHT OF, on Georgia indian blankets 24
ELVAS, KNIGHT OF on Georgia indian costume 22
EMBROIDERY, Lack of remains of 12
of southern Indians 28
EMMEET, J. W., mortuary fabrics procured by 30
FANS of turkey feathers 17
FEATHER blankets of the Choctaw 24
weaving among Louisiana Indians 25
work described 27
Lack of remains of 12
FISH-WEIRS of Virginia indians 14
of wattle work 13
FLORIDA indians, Nets made and used by 45
FOSSIL fabrics discussed 28
GEORGIA, Fabrics from 36
indians, Textile fabrics of 17
Remains of matting from 36
GRASSES employed in spinning 22
HAIR used in weaving 22, 24, 25, 28, 36
HAKLUYT, RICHARD, on Indian sieves 17
HARIOT, THOMAS, on indian costume 22
mat houses 18
indian fish-weirs 14
method of spinning 23
HAYWOOD, JOHN, Mortuary fabrics described by 17, 29
HEMP, Indian, in spinning and weaving 22, 23, 24, 25, 34
HENRY, JOSEPH, Description of cane matting by 37
HOLMES, W. H., Memoir by, on prehistoric textile art 3-45
on Peruvian feather-work 27
HOWLAND, H. R., Copper-preserved cloth found by 37
HUNTER, J. D., on Osage weaving 25
ILLINOIS, Copper-preserved cloth from 37
Fabric-impressed pottery from 41, 45
IOWA, Fabrics from 36
IROQUOIS, Nets of 26