wearing blanket, unrecorded Potawatomi artist

Among Sallie Casey Thayer’s collection of global textiles is this wearing blanket, an example of the ribbonwork tradition practiced by the Potawatomi peoples and other Native American communities living around the Great Lakes. Ribbonwork entails layering several strips of colored ribbon, often cut into intricate geometric or floral patterns, onto fabric to serve as a decorative border or trim. This practice was introduced in the late 1700s, when vibrant silk ribbons were exported from France to colonized North America. French fur trappers traded them with the Native peoples in the Great Lakes region.
Well-preserved ribbonwork from the late 19th and early 20th centuries is relatively rare in museum collections because of both the sharp decline in the practice by the early 1900s and the fragile nature of silk ribbons. This is one of the Spencer Museum’s few examples of this unique regional expression of Native aesthetics. By the 1970s, ribbonwork witnessed a resurgence, and once again decorates the regalia of powwow dancers from certain tribes.

Among Sallie Casey Thayer’s collection of global textiles is this wearing blanket, an example of the ribbonwork tradition practiced by the Potawatomi peoples and other Native American communities living around the Great Lakes. Ribbonwork entails
layering several strips of colored ribbon, often cut into intricate geometric or floral patterns, onto fabric to serve as a decorative border or trim. This practice was introduced in the late 1700s, when vibrant silk ribbons were exported from France to colonized North America. French fur trappers traded them with the Native peoples in the Great Lakes region.
Well-preserved ribbonwork from the late 19th and early 20th centuries is relatively rare in museum collections because of both the sharp decline in the practice by the early 1900s and the fragile nature of silk ribbons. This is one of the Spencer Museum’s few examples of this unique regional expression of Native aesthetics. By the 1970s, ribbonwork witnessed a resurgence, and once again decorates the regalia of powwow dancers from certain tribes.Sallie Casey Thayer collected this Potawatomi wearing blanket in 1920. It offers an exceptional example of Potawatomi appliqué technique. Wide bands of very delicate silk appliqué on a thin black, woolen cloth cover the sides and bottom of the blanket. Over the years, the black wool suffered from severe damage from insects such as moths, leaving large holes and making the textile too fragile to handle or display. In addition, the silk and ribbons have degraded over time because of an inherent instability of the silk.

Many wool textiles from the 1800s were made using processes that included mercury compounds and were sometimes treated with pesticides like arsenic, now known to be toxic. As a precaution, this blanket was tested by a conservator using a portable X-ray fluorescence device, and was fortunately found to be free from harmful compounds, making it safe to be sent to another conservator for stabilization.

During the conservation process, the black wool textile was attached to a wool backing material dyed to the same color as the original. Holes in the fabric were filled with small patches sewn to the backing material to give the damaged surface a more even appearance. Creases on the silk ribbons and appliqué were first humidified to flatten the creased areas, then some of the ribbons were encapsulated inside sheer fabric to give the illusion that the ribbons are still one continuous piece. The conservation process has finally made this wearing blanket stable enough to be handled and displayed, returning its appearance closer to its original, vibrant state.

Tap on the image above and swipe to see photographs of before and after the conservation of the wearing blanket.