Plymouth

Native American postcards end up all over the globe; this card was received in trade from Germany and features a recreation event that can be seen at Plymouth Plantation, a living history museum that tells of an early English colony in the US. In addition to exploring English colonialism the plantation also shows life ways for the Wampanoag people who hunted, fished and grew garden crops. An interpreter demonstrates the making of a dug out canoe in which the middle of a log is burned out.

Wampanoag people were adversely affected by the English; there was conflict over land and resources plus native people died from disease. Many were captured and sold into slavery for the plantations in the Caribbean. Tribal members retained a small amount of their lands and today have state recognition; enrollment has increased and they continue to assert their identity and treaty rights.

more fun tags

I added my name to a US/Canada tag on Postcrossing and received a First Nations Cree man from the province of Alberta. Funny, the sender grew up just a few miles from where I live now...she comes home each year and so one day I may actually meet her in person!

There are many groups of Cree people; those in Alberta lived on the northern plains. Historically they would have hunted and traded with Metis (native people mixed with French).


Another tag features late prehistoric Puebloan pottery (1100-1300AD) in a form referred to as a Stirrup canteen

This postcrosser offered some interesting comments on Chief Moses, discusses in an earlier post.

a clash of cultures

I am fortunate to receive cards from Central and South America from time to time! This card was sent from Brazil by a Postcrosser in an exchange; I will share her other cards with my students but this one was for me. The text is all in Portuguese but I can get the general impression: the arrival of Europeans in 1500.

Desembarque de Pedro Alvares Cabral em Porto Seguro em 1500
Oslo de Oscar Pereira da Silva (1867-1939)

like other contact situations, Native people in Brazil were affected by European diseases, were enslaved, killed if they resisted, and their lands taken for the extraction of natural resources. They continue to press for their rights to land, protection, medical care and the continuity of cultural traditions.

Tags!

I have begun to explore the tag forum on Postcrossing....users post their name and in some cases wishes, then another user tags them and sends something nice. Here are 2 cards that came a few weeks ago but have waited patiently to be listed:

 This super lovely heron was painted by a Canadian Fist Nation artist: Paul Windsor, Haisla, Heiltsuk. He is just 32, lives in Vancouver and is an illustrator of books as well. Such a pretty card.

Heline, a Canadian who now lives down in Austin Texas, sent me this lovely photo of a Ute woman and child in a cradleboard taken in 1900. Utes lived a tough life in the Basin, interacting with southwestern, southern plains and mountain tribes.

Dine (Navajo) child

Victoria in California tagged me and sent this lovely card of a Dine woman and child. I had never seen the photo before and its new to my collection! The image is titled Indian Baby Carriage and easily traced to images held in the Library of Congress. The photo was taken around 1914 and is attributed to the studio of William Pennington & Wesley Rowland. The LOC has a number of Navajo photos with their copyright.

Hopi pottery

I love swapping cards with Michelle out in Albuquerque but this one was sent as a "tag"...an odd arrangement where postcrossers post their name and someone can then claim one of their offerings. I've only participated a few times and am still not sure what its all about! But I was happy to grab Michelle; we've had wonderful exchanges and I was super pleased to ask for this card! The lovely pots are all at the Heard Museum in Phoenix and Michelle notes that her great grandmother had met Maria Martinez, the famous potter from San Idefonso Pueblo (who was known for her black on black style):  "There's a pretty cool family story about great-grandma and Maria, Maria asked her to watch her pottery in front of the Palace of the Governors while she went to do something. A photographer came and took my great-grandma's photo with Maria's pots. Later, the photo showed up in a newspaper saying my great-grandma was Maria! She was Scottish, and didn't look a thing like her!"

Shopping with Snowbirds

The owners of a nice Native art shop in the tourist town of Saugatuck, Michigan have sent their announcement of 2013 shop opening! During the winter they are down in New Mexico, buying from local artists that they have known for many years and then they are here just for a short summer. I always go up for a fun day with friends Ray & Cindy who find lovely things to buy. Occasionally I pick up something small & affordable (last year I got a Navajo doll) but really I just love to hear the owners' stories of their artist friends and learn facts about all their super neat merchandise. They really care about the artists and their families, plus have an encyclopedic knowledge of SW art.They carry real southwestern art, not the tourist junk, and if money fell from the trees I'd find plenty of old big chunky Navajo silver to buy! They also have a small amount of Great Lakes baskets etc.

We always go to the shop first, then have lunch at a cafe, walk the town a bit, and get ice cream. Most of the shops in the town sell clothing, jewelry, handmade art objects, etc and the local drug store still sells post cards. Its a great way to spend a day and we are already making plans to go soon!

And they do carry fine quality Navajo weavings...well out of my price range!!