Sioux Quilled Pipe Bag
The standing group has two men unnamed and Peter Iron Shell, the sitting group from the left pictures Old Bear Dog, He Frightens, and Pretty Bird. (Early 20th. century) Photo from Brulé; the Sioux People of the Rosebud.
This beautiful quilled pipe bag dates to the last quarter of the 1800s but remains in excellent condition today. It measures to about 39 inches in length, including the fringe. The original owner is "He Frightens" (a.k.a Joe Frightens), the son of Chief Iron Shell of the Brulé Sioux. The bag is finely decorated with red, white, and purple quillwork, bright red feathers, and a long fringe at the bottom. We even have a photograph of He Frightens wearing this exact bag!
He Frightens' father, Chief Iron Shell, came to prominence after a raid on the Pawnee in 1843. Then, in 1855, General William S. Harney attacked the Brulé Sioux at Lewellen, Nebraska; during the attack, two of Iron Shell's wives were captured, but he managed to escape. A total of 86 Sioux were killed, including many women and children. That confrontation and massacre constituted the largest loss of life through death or capture and loss of property that the Sicangu (Brulé) had ever suffered. During the Powder River War of 1866-1868, he became the chief of the Brulé Sioux Orphan Band. Once he signed the peace treaty to the war, he lived the rest of his life peacefully on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota. His birth and death date varies, but he roughly lived between 1816 and 1896 (some accounts say 1820 and 1870s). Throughout his life, he married dozens of wives and fathered dozens of children. The photograph pictured here is an image of six of Iron Shell's sons, including He Frightens. The standing group has two men unnamed and Peter Iron Shell, the sitting group from the left pictures Old Bear Dog, He Frightens, and Pretty Bird. The quilled pipe bag is clearly pictured in front of He Frightens.
Quillwork is crafted using different sized quills from varying parts of a porcupine. The craft requires patience and delicacy. It also predates beadwork. By 1860 quillwork was practically replaced with beadwork for decoration. Traditionally, this was a woman's craft that reflected good character, social standing and honor through these beautiful creations. They worked many hours to sort, dye, wrap, plait, and sew the quills as decorations to clothing and objects. Quills could soften when wet and harden again when dry, so a quillworker would keep quills soft by placing them in their mouths as they worked.
Artisans today combine quillwork and other traditional materials with modern materials. Also, while traditionally the work of a woman, male artists create notable quill and bead crafts today. While beads generally replaced quills due to the abundance of quantity, the fact quillwork is still used and popular today shows its resilience as a traditional and sacred art. Artists like Norman Moyah are passionate about reviving this traditional art form. Modern artisans create work to represent Sioux culture while also extending traditional artwork limits and creating additional income for Sioux communities.
Blog by Jazlyn Sanderson
References:
Dyck, Paul. Brulé; the Sioux People of the Rosebud. United States: Northland Press, 1971.
Museum of the South Dakota State Historical Society. "Living Traditions: Dakota, Nakota, Lakota Art." Accessed October 3, 2020. https://history.sd.gov/museum/docs/LivingTraditions.pdf
Sioux Quilled Pipe Bag, ca. Late 1800s.