The Great Road Trip 2017.....Part Twenty One/Day Seventeen

Part One of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Two of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Three of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Four of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Five of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Six of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Seven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eight of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Nine of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Ten of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Eleven of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Twelve of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE
Part Thirteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fourteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE  

Part Fifteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 
Part Sixteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

Part Seventeen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 

Part Eighteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

Part Nineteen of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE 

Part Twenty of the Great Western Road Trip is HERE

So we left off with the Buffalo Bill Cody exhibit last time.

Back out into the common area was a Kentucky Flintlock .45 Rifle.

My 7 x Great Grandfather, Robert Baker, and his brothers were the developers of the predecessors of this muzzle loading long rifle that was the stock and trade in the frontier of America from the time of the American Revolution onward.

They were awarded a patent from King William to produce these firearms outside of Philadelphia and once the Revolution happened they turned to producing weapons for the rebelling colonists. I am related to these folks through my maternal Great Grandmother, Lucy Baker.

Then Hubs and I both went into the extensive Native American exhibit.

Lots of examples of pottery and items of daily life of the Plains Indians.

A teepee set up like the one we stayed in on the trip West.....

A tanned hide with pictoral detailing, probably a ceremonial cape.

Plains Indians were a nomadic peoples, following the food supply to hunt.

A beautiful example of a ceremonial chief's headdress

More tools made from metals available.....

A buffalo headdress fir ceremonial and spiritual occasions.  Only elite males of the tribe wore these.

Various weapons used by Plains Indians.  Once they had contact with and traded with the English the "shooting sticks" became a popular item.

A War Lodge.  When traveling through enemy territory these were temporary shelters for Plains Indians.  Being sticks they didn't draw attention to whom might be inside.

Some examples of weaving and an early photo of a native family wearing hand woven garments.

A bone breastplate or chest armor was a popular ornamentation worn by warriors.  They were made of hair pipe bones(from buffalo or birds), attached around the neck with leather thongs and were often decorated with beading.  I bet this was a powerful visual being worn by a warrior(and offered some protection to the chest area).

A bead embellished handmade horse saddle blanket.

A Plains Indian on a horse pulling a litter of goods and an infant strapped to the back in  cradle.

A decorative spear.

An example of pictography, an animal(buffalo?)carved into a rock.

If you ever read "The Revenant", you know this is a type of boat described in the book.  It's a frame in a round basket shape.  I've seen it referred to as a piroque, which is a type of Cajun boat still used in Louisiana today.  It's similar to the bamboo constructed round boats still made and used in Vietnam.

An elaborate fur, bone or claw? and beaded neck piece.  That thing must weigh a ton!

More decorated lances.

Another decorate hide.

A long woven tapestry decorate with feathers, dye and eagle motifs.

More examples of decorative, wearable arts.....

More Native decorative arts.....

A colored depiction of a buffalo hunt made on a tanned hide....

Then the exhibit got into the sad stuff......

Native children removed from their homes and sent away to schools to become "civilized"......

We all know these many years later how this story ends.....so depressing.

Sure gives creedence to the old saying, "I'm from the government and I'm here to help." 8-(

We ducked into their gift shop on the way out.

Other than buying a couple of pencils we didn't bring anything else home as it was like the Archway place in Nebraska and way overpriced.

After spending most of the day at this museum we hit the road heading East again.

The next installment when I get around to it. ;-)

Sluggy