Villages of the Algonquian, Siouan, and Caddoan Tribes West of the MississippiBushnell, David I. (David Ives)
History
Villages of the Algonquian, Siouan, and Caddoan Tribes West of the Mississippi
Bushnell, David I. (David Ives)
Algonquian Indians; Caddoan Indians; Indians of North America -- Dwellings; Siouan Indians
In addition to the food supplied by the chase the people of the
permanent villages had large gardens in which they raised quantities of
corn and beans of various sorts, gourds and sunflowers of several
varieties, and of the seeds of the latter "very nice cakes are made."
Many animals in addition to the buffalo, and various plants besides
those cultivated in the gardens, served the Mandan for food.
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 77 PLATE 40
[Illustration: "THE INTERIOR OF THE HUT OF A MANDAN CHIEF"
Karl Bodmer, 1833]
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 77 PLATE 41
[Illustration: _a._ Mandan wooden bowl. Marked "Ft. Berthold, Dacotah
Ter. Drs. Gray and Matthews." Diameter 7-1/4 inches, depth 2 inches.
(U.S.N.M. 6341)]
[Illustration: _b._ Mandan earthenware jar, collected by Drs. Gray and
Matthews. (U.S.N.M. 8407)]
[Illustration: _c._ Wooden bowl. Marked "Bowl of Mandan Indians, Dakota
T. Drs. Gray and Matthews--U. S. A." Diameters 10-3/4 and 9-1/4 inches,
depth 3-1/2 inches. (U.S.N.M. 8406)]
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 77 PLATE 42
[Illustration: _a._ Spoon, marked "Buffalo horn spoon, presented by Gen.
T. Duncan." Length about 10 inches. (U.S.N.M. 12259)]
[Illustration: _b._ Spoon made of horn of mountain sheep. "Mandan
Indians, Dacotah Ter. Drs. Gray and Matthews." Extreme length 16-1/2
inches. (U.S.N.M. 6333)]
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 77 PLATE 43
[Illustration: "MINATARREE VILLAGE"
George Catlin]
At the time of Catlin's and Maximilian's visits to the Mandan the latter
were making and using their primitive forms of utensils such as had been
in use for generations. Wooden mortars, bowls hollowed out of hard
knots, spoons made of the horn of buffalo and mountain sheep, and, most
interesting of all, dishes and vessels made of pottery--all these were
used in the preparation or serving of food. Some remarkable examples of
wooden bowls made by the Mandan are now preserved in the collection of
the United States National Museum, Washington. One of the most
interesting is shown in plate 41, _c_ (U.S.N.M. 8406), and another, of
simpler form but equally well made, in plate 41, _a_ (U.S.N.M. 6341).
Both examples were evidently quite old even when collected. They are
fashioned out of maple knots, worked thin and smooth, and are beautiful
specimens. Large spoons, often termed "drinking cups," were, as already
mentioned, made of the horns of buffalo and mountain sheep. The former
were extensively used by many tribes, and usually resembled the one
shown in plate 42, _a_. The spoons made of mountain-sheep horns were
often much larger and thinner, of a yellowish hue, and the handles were
frequently bent into form or decorated. A very beautiful spoon of this
sort is shown in plate 42, _b_. (U.S.N.M. 6333.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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