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Art History Virtual Exhibition

One-Drop Gourd Stitch Beaded Keychain Fob Great Plains cultures Late 20th century Beads, bone hairpipes, leather, and metal cone, L. 3 cm x W. 15 mm x H. 21 cm Hernandez collection #2014.1

Beaded Keychain Fobs: Researched, Conserved, and Restored by Lindsey VanDieren

September, 2020 by Sarah Teel

Before Conservation
Beaded Keychain Fob
Sioux (Lakota) culture
20th century
Glass seed beads, wood, and leather
L. 2 cm x W. 2 cm x H. 17 cm
BFCP collection #2014.33

 

After Conservation
Beaded Keychain Fob
Sioux (Lakota) culture
20th century
Glass seed beads, wood, and leather
L. 2 cm x W. 2 cm x H. 17 cm
BFCP collection #2014.33

 

Before Conservation
One-Drop Gourd Stitch Beaded Keychain Fob
Great Plains cultures
Late 20th century
Beads, bone hairpipes, leather, and metal cone, L. 3 cm x W. 15 mm x H. 21 cm
Hernandez collection #2014.1

 

After Conservation
One-Drop Gourd Stitch Beaded Keychain Fob
Great Plains cultures
Late 20th century
Beads, bone hairpipes, leather, and metal cone, L. 3 cm x W. 15 mm x H. 21 cm
Hernandez collection #2014.1

 

These two cylindrical, elaborately beaded forms used as keychain fobs are pieces that actually originate from the beaded handles made for Lakota prayer feathers. Prayer feathers are used in smudging ceremonies, which are often done during healing rituals. In this ceremony, a healer or religious specialist burns a smudge stick made of sacred herbs in a special bowl. The sacred herbs may consist of cedar, sage, sagebrush, sagegrass, sweetgrass, tobacco, or yarrow, which are gathered, dried, and then tied together into smudge stick bundles. While burning the smudge stick, the healer or religious specialist uses the prayer feather to fan the smoke over the person being treated. The smudging ritual is believed to cleanse  a person’s body, mind, and spirit.

These two keychain fobs are decorated with intricate, colorful beaded designs and leather tassels, and one is additionally decorated with bone hairpipes beads and metal cones. Hairpipe beads are traditionally used for chokers, for men’s breastplates, and as trade items, while metal cones were used as additional decoration on a wide variety of objects. In general, the more elaborate the decoration, the more highly valued these objects become. Beaded keychain fobs like these are commonly made for personal use and for sale in the tourist trade.

 

 

For more information, you may contact the researcher(s) noted in the title of this exhibit entry, or Dr. Billie Follensbee, the professor of the course, at BillieFollensbee@MissouriState.edu

Filed Under: 2019 Fall, ART/MST 488: Basic Conservation of Art and Artifacts Tagged With: 20th century, beaded keychain fob, conservation, gourd stitch, Great Plains Cultures, lakota culture, late 20th century, Sioux Culture

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  • 2016 Spring, ART 386: Art of Africa
  • 2017 Fall, ART/MST 488: Basic Conservation of Art and Artifacts
  • 2017 Spring, ART 485: Art of Mesoamerica
  • 2018 Spring, ART 386: Art of Africa
  • 2019 Fall, ART/MST 488: Basic Conservation of Art and Artifacts
  • 2019 Spring, ART 485: Art of Mesoamerica
  • 2020 Spring, ART 386: Art of Africa

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