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Cheyenne Beaded Moccasins, Flag and Floral Motifs
Cheyenne, southern Plains
1890
Buffalo hide, glass beads, sinew
Length 10 1/2" (26.7 cm)
Provenance: Yoshi Miyake, New York
Cheyenne beadwork of the reservation era incorporated American flag imagery alongside traditional geometric and naturalistic motifs, reflecting the complex negotiation of identity and cultural expression that characterized Plains material production in the post-reservation period. The flag motif on Plains moccasins and other personal objects from this period has been understood variously as an assertion of political awareness, an accommodation to outside expectations, and a creative recontextualization of a powerful outside symbol within an indigenous decorative tradition. The combination of flag imagery with floral and geometric elements on a single pair of moccasins reflects the aesthetic pluralism of Cheyenne beadwork production in the 1890s.
This pair is densely beaded on a white ground with American flag motifs at the toe and heel, floral rosette elements across the vamp, and geometric border bands in polychrome beadwork in red, blue, green, and pink. The beadwork is sinew-sewn throughout and covers the full vamp surface, with a dark cloth upper at the ankle. Provenance traces to Yoshi Miyake of New York.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Cheyenne, southern Plains
1890
Buffalo hide, glass beads, sinew
Length 10 1/2" (26.7 cm)
Provenance: Yoshi Miyake, New York
Cheyenne beadwork of the reservation era incorporated American flag imagery alongside traditional geometric and naturalistic motifs, reflecting the complex negotiation of identity and cultural expression that characterized Plains material production in the post-reservation period. The flag motif on Plains moccasins and other personal objects from this period has been understood variously as an assertion of political awareness, an accommodation to outside expectations, and a creative recontextualization of a powerful outside symbol within an indigenous decorative tradition. The combination of flag imagery with floral and geometric elements on a single pair of moccasins reflects the aesthetic pluralism of Cheyenne beadwork production in the 1890s.
This pair is densely beaded on a white ground with American flag motifs at the toe and heel, floral rosette elements across the vamp, and geometric border bands in polychrome beadwork in red, blue, green, and pink. The beadwork is sinew-sewn throughout and covers the full vamp surface, with a dark cloth upper at the ankle. Provenance traces to Yoshi Miyake of New York.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.