103 



a few stems in the coil just beneath, the stitch looping under the 

 stitch of the lower coil" (O. T. Mason). We find the Eskimo 

 making baskets wherever there is a good supply of basket grass 

 (i'vik), Ammophila arenaria, as at the mouth of the Yukon river, 

 on the shores of Hudson bay, and on the east coast of Labrador. 

 Most of the specimens are perfectly plain, and of the common 

 "uncovered bandbox or ginger jar" shape (Mason), but certain 

 specimens collected from Labrador offer simple designs, which 

 have led me to consider them under art. 



The shape of the basketry in Labrador has been much 

 influenced by contact with the whites, but the material and 

 workmanship are Eskimo, and we find, besides the conventional 

 "jar" shape, baskets patterned after kettles (Plate XXX d), 

 bowls (Plate XXX c) , cups (Plate XXX b) , and dishes with covers 

 and with handles (Plate XXXI B a and b). These are simply 

 attempts to reproduce civilized forms in native ware. Other 

 forms have a few characteristic Eskimo designs, which appear 

 also in leather appliqu6 and ivory work. I refer to the border 

 decoration, which consists of openwork, arranged in an angular 

 or curved design. This type of design is featured in Mason's 

 account of aboriginal American basketry in a specimen from the 

 "Central Eskimo" (this should be Labrador Eskimo, because the 

 specimen is from Davis inlet) in Plate 126. The openwork is 

 produced "by wrapping the foundation with straw for one-half 

 an inch and then sewing, as in ordinary coiled work, the angles 

 to the coil below" (ibid., page 378). For a similar specimen from 

 Hamilton inlet, Labrador, see Plate XXXI A b. The Labrador 

 Eskimo use this method both in baskets, on the borders and 

 bottoms, and in plaques. It offsets the plainness of the surface. 

 A more complicated arrangement of the angular design is shown 

 in basket (Plate XXXI A a) and plaque (Plate XXXI Ac). A 

 very uncommon border is the margin of wavy lines, converging 

 and diverging (Plate XXXI Ad). The same design appears 

 in the leather applique of the East Greenlanders. 1 



It is worthy of note that we find an abundance of basketry 

 work among the easternmost representatives of the Eskimo as 



1 See Thalbitzer, The Ammassalik Esktmo, p. 635. Copenhagen, 1914. 



