Object: Bear Claw Necklace

NAM-09-18-051
Bear claw necklace
United States, Plains
Osage
19th Century
Materials: Plains Grizzly claws, glass beads, otter fur, leather

This bear claw necklace, from the Osage tribe, is currently on display at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. The necklace is made of 30 Plains Grizzly Bear claws and three beaded medallions in blue, yellow, green and pink. There are amber colored cut glass beads strung between the bear claws. The base of the necklace is made from otter pelt.

Plains Grizzly claws are long and yellowish, unlike the short and dark colored claws of Black Bears. All of the claws from the front paws were typically used, although the claws from the rear paws were used on rare occasions. Sadly, the once fierce and powerful Plains Grizzly, otherwise called Ursus horribilis Ord, is now extinct due to human population expansion and other causes. In traditional Native cultures and mythology, the bear was a sacred animal and a seeker of the unknown and mystical. Additionally, bears possessed admirable attributes such as strength, power, and courage, which the wearers wished to display in their own lives. Otter fur is always used for this type of necklace. Like the bear, the otter was also believed to be a seeker of the unknown and to possess great power.

Traditionally, only chiefs and elders wore bear claw necklaces. These necklaces were a mark of distinction among most Plains tribes. This particular necklace has been rumored to have been worn by Chief Bacon Rind (Chief Wah-shi-ha), and two other warriors before him. Bear claw necklaces also held ceremonial importance in times of war. It was believed that the necklace would aid in overcoming difficulties and help to obtain victory. [Erin Duncan]

Examples of how bear claw necklaces were worn can be found at the following links:

Chief Shon-Ton-Ca-Be (Black Dog) in 1876

Nah-Kea-Pu-At-See (One Who Reaches the Sky) in 1877

Object: Necklace

NAM-09-06-304
Choker (Necklace)

Collected among the Cheyenne, Western Oklahoma, USA
September 1883–September 1885
Materials: Glass Seed Beads, Horse Hair, Leather

Not all objects found in museum collections are in a condition suitable for traditional exhibition. This necklace, or “choker,” fragment is a useful example of a piece that would likely never be included in a public exhibition due to its fragile state; however, here we are able to highlight its importance to SNOMNH’s collections and use it as a vehicle for discussion on a variety of subjects.

This style choker was at one time worn by both women and men from a wide distribution of tribes found in the Midwest, specifically the around the Great Lakes and in Prairie (Eastern Plains) region. The technique used to create this choker is called side-stitch. This is a hand-woven, or more precisely “oblique interlacing” technique of beadwork that creates diagonal rows. This particular choker was constructed using black horse hair—a material that was later replaced by commercially available threads. The use of horse hair in its construction and the subsequent use by the donor’s family as a plaything have contributed to the current condition of this object.

In 1973, a collection of American Indian objects were donated to SNOMNH (formerly the Stovall Museum) by Mrs. John Surr, daughter of Dr. Vernon W. Stiles. Dr. Stiles worked for the Indian Traders, Hemphill and Way, at the Darlington Indian Agency, Indian Territory, between September 1883 and 7 September 1885. During his two-year employment as a salesman, Dr. Stiles had the opportunity to meet and trade with many Cheyenne and Arapahos in the local Native community. It was during this time that the choker came into Dr. Stiles’s possession.

Knowledge of where an object was acquired and who collected it can create inaccurate identification because the person who last owned an object was often not its maker. In fact, trade in objects was, and continues to be, a very common practice between Native peoples. Because this choker was collected among the Cheyenne and donated along with other items identifiable as Cheyenne material, it was labeled “Cheyenne.” As mentioned earlier, this style choker was common to a wide distribution of tribes; however, the Cheyenne were not among this group. It is possible that the choker was acquired in trade from another tribe, or perhaps, someone from another tribe married into a Cheyenne family bringing this piece or the construction technique with them. It is also quite possible that a Cheyenne beadworker learned this beadwork technique and produced it themselves, which would make the “Cheyenne” label accurate. Without any further information on who exactly made the choker it is impossible to say with certainty from which tribe this object originated.

To learn more about this style of choker, see Georg J. Barth (1993:145-158) and David Dean (2002) for details on the side-stitch technique. Also see Gaylord Torrence (1989:16) on the use of side-stitch chokers. For more information on the Cheyenne and Arapaho, see here or for more information about the Darlington Indian Agency see here.

SNOMNH invites your comments on this choker or any of the other topics addressed above. [John P. Lukavic]

Object: Hair Ornament

NAM-10-01-002
Hair Ornament

Mesquakie (Fox), Tama, Iowa, United States of America
before 1954
Materials: glass seed beads, thread, satin ribbon

This hair ornament came to SNOMNH in May of 1954. It is a beaded “hair tie” or “drop” worn by women of various tribes throughout the Midwest region of the U.S., particularly among the tribes originating near the western Great Lakes such as the Mesquakie (Fox), Sauk, Winnebago, Potawatomie and Menominee. This drop was constructed using a technique called “side-stitch,” which is a hand-woven, or more precisely “oblique interlacing” form of beadwork that creates diagonal rows. This technique differs from loom beadwork, which creates horizontal rows of beads and requires a heddle, a straight loom, or both.

This style of hair ornament was once widely used, but is much less common today. Unmarried women would attach side-stitch drops to a single braid behind their heads and allow them to hang down their backs. Today, when women wear traditional dress, loom beaded strips or decorative ribbon are more commonly used in this same manner; although, both side-stitch drops and “chokers,” worn around the neck of both men and women, are experiencing a sort of renaissance in recent years.

In 1954, SNOMNH (formerly known as the Stovall Museum) received a large donation of American Indian material objects from the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. Among other goals, the mission of GFWC includes efforts to support the arts and promote education. Various local chapters of this organization contributed items from tribes residing in their area to support this mission. The Women’s Club of Iowa contributed this hair ornament, which was given to them by Jonas Poweshiek (Mesquakie)—the great-grandson of the Mesquakie chief, Powesheik.

To learn more about this style of hair ornament, see Alanson Skinner’s “Observations on the Ethnology of the Sauk Indians, Part III, Notes on Material Culture” (1925, p. 133 and p. 167). Also see Georg J. Barth (1993, pp. 145-158) for details on the side-stitch technique and Gaylord Torrence (1989, pp. 3-29) and Mary Alicia Owen (1902) for other relevant material culture background. For more information about the Mesquakie people and their history see here.

The Division of Ethnology at the SNOMNH invites your comments on this hair ornament and/or the style of beadwork used to construct it. [John P. Lukavic]

Object: Moccasins

NAM-9-6-21a-b
Moccasins

Southern Cheyenne
West Central Oklahoma
Early 20th Century
Materials: Cowhide, Rawhide, Sinew, Glass Beads

These moccasins are constructed in the two-piece style. Each moccasin consists of a soft leather upper sewn to a stiff rawhide sole. The beaded design on the vamps of these moccasins is referred to as the tipi door design. It was used on girls and women’s moccasins. This pair exhibits a number of features commonly found on Cheyenne moccasins. For example, the heal seam does not extend to the top of the ankle flaps, creating a v shaped gap where the flaps meet. Cheyenne women were extremely selective about the beads they used. They preferred to use small beads in their beadwork. Even within a single lot there was frequently significant variation in the quality of the beads. Consequently, the beadworkers would often sort through the beads, selecting only those that exhibited uniform color, shape and size and culling inferior quality beads. [Michael P. Jordan]

Object: Beaded Pouch

NAM-9-6-331
Beaded Pouch
Southern Cheyenne
West Central Oklahoma
Late 19th Century
Materials: Hide, Glass Seed Beads

This pouch is made from the toe portion of a Southern Cheyenne moccasin. Note the distinctive shape. The beaded design on this pouch is similar to the decoration on a pair of beaded moccasins in the museum’s collection. Members of the Cheyenne community who viewed the pouch identified the beaded design as the “tipi door,” a design used to decorate the vamp on women’s moccasins. The reverse side of the pouch is not beaded. Materials from worn out objects were occasionally recycled in the production of new items. For example, rawhide moccasin soles were sometimes cut out of old parfleches. Evidence of this practice exists in the painted designs on the soles of some moccasins in museum collections. [Michael P. Jordan]