510 EEPOKT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1902. 



there i.s no historical reference to the pueblo.s from which these .speci- 

 mens were derived, and there is no evidence of the Iron Age in them. It 

 seems prohahle, liowever, that they date before the year ITOO, but just 

 how much anterior it is not possil)le at present to say." 



ATHAPASCAN BASKETRY 



A summary of Atha])ascan basketr\' in its etlinic areas would include 

 the foUowino- : 



The northern Athapascans in the interior of Alaska and in the 

 Mackenzie drainage make coiled ])asketry in a variety of types, the 

 material being willow and root of the conifers. The Pacific coast group, 

 living formerly in Washington, Oregon, and northwestern California, 

 near the sea, of which the Hupas are the best known, excel in twined 

 work with decoration in overlaying, but these tribes have not the ver- 

 satility of the Pomo, farther south. All the weaving is of one variety , 

 well known in the region. 



The southern Athapascans, under many names, practice both coiled 

 and twined basketr^^ The}^ base their coiled work on hard stems and 

 sew them with splints of cottonwood, mulberry, sumac, and willow or 

 strips of yucca. They also used agave tiber. 



The mescal plant {Agave amerlccma), says Bourke, is to the Apache 

 what the palm is to the East. It is baked in ovens for victuals and its 

 juice is fermented to make a drink. For the basket maker the thorns 

 are good needles, the fibers excellent thread material, and the flower 

 stalk forms the frame of the carrying outfit. 



The Apaches or southern Athapascan basket makers were formerly 

 spread over eastern Arizona, western New Mexico, and in Texas along 

 the Rio Grande, as wnll be seen in PowelFs linguistic map.'' The}" 

 were gathered on reservations by Gen. Nelson A. Miles. Scattered 

 bands are to be found here and there. Mr. James mentions one near 

 Short Horn Mountains and in the neighborhood of Palomas and Agua 

 Caliente, comprising about thirty families of basket makers. The 

 collector or student must not be surprised, therefore, if in the hands 

 of Apaches are seen work of other tribes. Indeed, he will frequently 

 see the women borrowing materials, structures, forms, and even designs 

 from outside. A large and varied collection of Apache ware is exhibited 

 in the Free Museum of Phoenix, Arizona, collected bv Messrs. Benham. 



On the authority of Mrs. J. S. Newman there are live tribes on 

 the Apache Reservation, and a few scattered members of other tribes, 

 but five to class as basket makers. Of these the Tonto should rank 

 fii-st, making chietiv oUas, which require more skill than plaques or 

 bowl shapes, and their work is universally even and good. Their 



« Archeological field, work in northeastern Arizona. Tlie Museum-Gates expedi- 

 tion, 1901. Walter Hough, Report of the U. S. National Museum, 1901, pp. 279-358. 

 ^'Seventh Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, 1891, jiocket. 



