Abstract
ABSTRACT Many textiles produced by Native American Woodlands cultures are made from bast (phloem) fibers from North American plants. While bast fibers are easy to identify with microscopy, determining the exact species has long been a challenge. Historically, bast fibers from Native American communities have been referred to as “Indian hemp,” a confusing term at best. This project undertaken as part of an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) focused on a combined approach by working with both community members and scientists to provide a cultural background for these important fibers as well as useful diagnostic tools for identification. Both macroscopic and microscopic characteristics were examined including color, feel, microfibrillar orientation, crystal species, and cross section analysis. A physical and digital reference collection was created for comparison. Eight fiber samples taken from six historic objects in NMAI’s collection were then examined to test effectiveness of bast fiber identification protocol. Results from this study confirm there continues to be limited success when identifying the exact bast fiber species in historic artifacts because of small sample size and aging characteristics.
Published Version
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