1st Nation Dances

This great card came from a very nice Canadian....always super to add a new card to my collection. Surprisingly, despite having a very rich native cultural presence, there seems to be relatively few 1st Nations postcards (with the exception of wood carving cards available in British Columbia). I often receive duplicates which I don't mind as each message is new & different, but it is nice to get a new design!!

Postcrossing profiles

An interesting feature of Postcrossing, the international postcard exchange site, is the profile section. Here members can add personal information including interests, preferences and more. My profile briefly discusses my Native card collection and occasionally members in the US, Canada, Mexico etc have kindly sent a card to add to my collection. But cards have a mysterious life, traveling all around the world in various ways. Recently I received a Mayan site card from a member in Switzerland

This card is an old souvenir, likely purchased by someone on holiday in Mexico in the 1960s. The Postcrosser found it in a second hand shop and now it resides happily in my binder of Mexican indigenous cards. The scene is the "House of the Doves" at Uxmal, a late Mayan site located in the Yucatan between the colonial city of Merida and the better known archaeological site of Chichen Itza. Uxmal is well known among scholars for its unusual architecture and elaborate stone carvings. I visited the site in the late 1980s; this card is a nice reminder of my own holiday which occurred long before I began collecting postcards.

Politics & Postcards

Recently I drew a name in Postcrossing who specifically asked for political cards offered by Donnelly & Colt. A Google search found their website and offerings; they are a small printer who also distributes a variety of political products and I purchased a few cards for my Postcrossing activities.
Among the offerings was this card, offering a slightly different version of posters etc that feature a photo of Geronimo. The real surprise is that the card includes the address and website info for the American Indian Movement! AIM developed in Minneapolis in the 1960s, helping recently relocated Native people adjust to urban life. Later it grew into a more aggressive political force confronting racism, tribal land issues, treaty rights and more. However violence marred the group's message and it declined as a leading voice for many Native Americans.

AIM PO Box 13521, Mpls MN 55414
www.aimovement.org

the card is produced by Vision Works www.changingworld.com

Card Giveaway

To celebrate Native American Heritage month I am giving away Native American postcards...if you would like to receive one please email me with your address at NDNcards@gmail.com

UNESCO Canada

An archaeologist in Canada sent me this wonderful card showing the new United Nations heritage site of Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump. The card has been issued by the Canadian Postal Service and Laura was so kind to special order it for me! Before horses became available First Nations hunters strategically moved bison herds close to cliffs and frightened them to jump off; many of these sites have very thick bone beds showing years of use.

Random act of kindness!

one of the nice aspects about participating in the international postcard group known as Postcrossing is making global friends and learning about their interests. One terrific gal in Indonesia has a broad collection (the word gigantic easily comes to mind!) but occasionally I find something special to send to her. In return she asked another user to send me a surprise thank you card, known in the group as a RAS (random act of smiles). This one came from Canada (with a super stamp depicting Sitting Bull & Buffalo Bill) and features contemporary Inuit art. The artist is eguer

Bison kill site

Prior to the arrival of European horses to the plains, all Native activity was done on foot, including buffalo hunting. To make this process easier, hunters steered the herd animals towards cliffs or box canyons making them easier to dispatch. Many of these sites were used for centuries, based upon the deep bone beds and associated stone butchering tools.
One site, Canada's Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump has been named as a UN heritage site and the Canadian PO has issued some special cards (one is coming from an archaeologist friend in Saskatoon) but in the meantime this great card was part of a trade