Woman's Dance Cape
CultureAssiniboine, Montana or Saskatchewan, Canada
Dateca. 1890-1900
MediumCotton cloth, glass beads, cowrie shells, and native tanned leather
DimensionsOverall: 23 × 30 inches (58.42 × 76.2 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust through exchange of the gifts of Daniel R. Anthony III and Mrs. Eleanor Anthony Tenney, Mr. Arthur Hobson in memory of Mrs. Pearl Hobson, Katherine Harvey, Mrs. Anna Miller Hutchason, Lei Laurie and Roy Miller in memory of De Aun Lorts, Faye Blair, Dorothy Hopper and Zolona Moss in memory of Leith Stevens, Dr. Harry G. Kroll, Miss Lillian Rupert, Mrs. E. W. Bennison, Miss C. F. Bieber, Miss Gertrude Cain, Kate Mulhearn, Mrs. Richard R. Nelson, Mrs. Elizabeth Hubbard, Sister Irena Cornelius and Mrs. Edward G. McLean
Object number92-31
On View
On viewGallery Location
- 208
Collections
DescriptionTubular glass beads completely cover a foundation trade cloth (white with blue stripes). composed of yellow, blue and grey beads float on a dominant background color of jade green beads. edge of cape are composed of yellow tubular beads and fringe at bottom of cape are composed of coral and blue tubular beads with cowrie shells attached.Gallery LabelDeveloped during the reservation period of the late 19th century by Northern Plains and Plateau women, capes of this type were worn on ceremonial occasions over Euro-American style cotton dresses. They were made almost entirely of non-Native materials and replicated the beaded yokes of earlier hide garments at a time when animal skins were increasingly difficult to obtain. This cape is distinguished by its remarkable color, resulting from the transparent, silver foil-lined, green glass beads covering its surface. The effect in sunlight would have been dazzling-an unforgettable visual experience for those witnessing its appearance-and the hanging fringe of beads and shells would have created a soft rattling sound as the dancer moved.
Torrence, Gaylord, ed. Continuum: North American Native Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Kansas City: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
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