Sioux Doll

seminole-doll.jpg

Dublin Core

Title

Sioux Doll

Subject

Doll

Description

This beaded buckskin doll was made by the Sioux people of present day North and South Dakota. Sioux children would use these dolls to play camp, complete with miniature tipis and horses. Doll making was an important opportunity for a young girl to learn how to tan hides, sew, make clothing, and make beadwork. This doll’s attire represents female Sioux clothing at its most formal. This type of dress, with a fully beaded yoke, was heavy and uncomfortable and would only be worn for special occasions. The two long white earrings on either side of the doll’s face probably represent dentalium (shell) earrings fashionable among wealthy Sioux women of the time.

Creator

Sioux Nation

Source

Schnakenberg, Henry

Date

1860-1870

Contributor

Curated by Lauren Fountain

Format

Head-buckskin with hair/fur, traces of yellow paint, glass beads, stone pendants on earrings, beaded necklace with stone pendant. Body-cotton cloth stuffed with wool, fur or grass. Dress- moccasins, dress and belt- buckskin, ‘gut’ for sewing, glass beads. Drops from awl case- tin cones, dyed horse hair, cotton string and thread.

Type

Image

Identifier

1931.10.15

Coverage

American: Great Plains, North/South Dakota

About the Original Item

Date Added
May 2, 2011
Collection
Fleming Museum
Item Type
Image
Citation
Sioux Nation, “Sioux Doll,” Omeka@CTL, accessed April 19, 2024, http://libraryexhibits.uvm.edu/omeka/items/show/605.
Associated Files