Beaded and Painted Hide

Two piece beaded elk hide is sewn at the center with sinew thread. Along the edges is a painted design in red ochre and laced fringe. The beaded blanket strip is beaded with sinew, but sewn onto the hide with cotton thread. Beaded strip shows small areas of bead loss, most notably at one medallion and at the end of the strip opposite. The hide is gathered and tied at three places on one end in the native style. Water staining is visible overall, particularly on one end, hide remains supple. Holes are visible that were patched by native repair. The hide was used as a prop for models by well known Taos artist Burt Gere Phillips, and can be seen most prominently in his oil on canvas work "A Daughter of the Water Clan". The painting appeared at the National Academy of Design in 1911 and is also pictured in a book by Julie Schimmel and Robert R White, about the artist. An ex library book copy accompanies this sale.