Vintage basket. This basket is over 75 years old, maybe older. It belonged to
my wife's uncle, a Federal Indian Law Enforcement Agent based in Albuquerque in
the 1940's. His jurisdiction was New Mexico, southern Colorado and eastern
Arizona.

The basket measures 6 1/2" tall, with a width opening of 9 1/4" outside. The
bottom is 7 1/2". This is a concentric circle coil weave, starting in the
center of the bottom and terminating at the top of one of the women figures.
The design features four figures of women, four V's and several other
characters. The head style may depict that the women are young, unmarried Hopi,
as photos and literature from the 1940's reveals that the unmarried girls had
elaborate buns, whereas the married women did not. I guess it was a way to show
availability. My statements do not mean that the basket is Hopi, but it is tall
and flat bottomed and Hopi baskets did have that feature.

The basket has suffered some water damage and there is staining near one of
the women. The bottom had some mildew that was removed by freezing the basket
and brushing. The coil material is visible in the photo's, on one of the V's.
Also, a few other areas show splint material as worn or missing.

This is a collectable piece.