Tsimshian Basket (Native American)

I just got this one today, it is a basket made by an master artist from the Tsimshian Native American Tribe. They are an indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast, and their baskets are very prized and collected along with their other art. This one is 5 and a quarter inches in diameter by almost 4 inches in height. It is made with Red Cedar which is gathered and prepared into tiny strips before it is woven into a basket. Then, the "false embroidery" is done on the outside to decorate it and is not seen on the inside of the basket. The lid has a hole in the middle that is done and finished on purpose, this basket was made to hold string and the loose end would come out of the top. There are two ducklings floating on "water" on each side of the basket. It is rare to find an undamaged basket with these kinds of decorations or words on them, so being able to bring this beauty into my collection is a good day indeed. :)

There is another user on here, Emersonestates, who also has some Tsimshian baskets up on his page. They are great ones, too :)

I do wish I knew who the artist was that made this, they were certainly masters at their craft to make this so perfectly and the weave so tiny. And the ducklings are just too cute for words. Hope you enjoy the pics.