Two Beaded Panels

late 1800s

Two Beaded Panels, late 1800s. Northeast Woodlands, Great Lakes Region, Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) or Nehiyawak (Cree) People?. Glass beads on wool; overall: 38.1 x 10.8 cm (15 x 4 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. F. J. Fertig 1939.210 In the 1800s, native peoples began to use European fabrics to fashion fine formal garments; they favored sturdy cloth, such as velvet and wool broadcloth, which provided support for heavy decorative beadwork that was added by hand. Often the fabric was a dark color, providing dramatic contrast for the multicolored beads. Rather than encrusting the entire garment, beadwork was confined to cuffs, “epaulettes,” bib-like plackets and yokes, rectangular panels sewn to leggings, shirts, and dresses, and the like.