I-11-28 Maidu burden or gathering basket.
The Maidu are divided into three groups: the Nisenan (Valley), the Konkow (Foothill) and the Sierra (Mountain) Maidu. These peoples spoke mutually unintelligible dialects of the Maidu language, which belongs to the Penutian Super Family of languages. Their traditional territory is in northeastern California just north of Yosemite and bordered on the west by the Sacramento River with Lake Tahoe to the east.
This type of burden basket with white bear grass and redbud designs is the type that was produced by the mountain or Sierra Maidu. These burdens are similar to those of the Achumawi and Atsugewi to the north of the sierra Maidu and accounts for the frequent misidentification of these maidu burdens. The similarities between these burdens are only superficial, however. For instance, all Achumawi and Atsugewi cones are started with three strand twining while the Maidu use diagonal or two stick plain twining (a completely different technique not only in construction but also in visual and textural results). The two northern groups also use an overlay of one type of material to cover a completely different material, usually pine root. On this type of burden, the Maidu used two layers of the same material, usually bear grass. While most designs are similar for all groups, the northern groups divide the designs into two distinct fields or bands of designs while the Maidu use only one field covering the entire basket. The design on this example represents a water snake. The basket is constructed using two stick plain twining for the start and finish with scraped hazel rods (Corylus) for the warp and pine root (Pinus) that has been dyed for the weft. The design field has been done in plain twining with two layers of bear grass (Xerophyllum) for the white and split unpeeled California redbud (Cercis) for the red. The rim rods are peeled willow (Salix) and is sewn on using split peeled maple (Acer).
An excellent example of a Maidu gathering basket. 12"d. by 10 1/2"h. Circa 1910. $1,950.00