Minneapolis Institute of Art

Firebag

Nēhiyawak (Cree) artist

Date

c. 1830

Medium

Wool, beads

Culture

Nēhiyawak (Cree)

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

In the early 1800s, a particular kind of elaborately beaded bag—a firebag—captured the imagination of Native women artists in the Subarctic, the Northern Plains, and some coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest. Firebags were made to store tobacco and flint, and are also known as Octopus Bags, a reference to their dangling, tentacle-like tabs at the base of the pouch. This particular firebag displays beadwork similar to that of the Dakhóta, Metis, and Cree peoples, known for their skillful use of tiny beads, with a bold central design and subtle floral motifs on red wool. In addition to the very fine beaded work that frames the piece, there are two beaded eagle designs on the back of the bag, making it unique. Nēhiyawak (Cree), United States, Americas

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