Contemporary Baskets

Today, Maine Indian basketmakers continue to use tools passed down from their ancestors to produce sturdy work baskets and ornate, finely woven, fancy baskets. Some 75 basketmakers from Maine’s four tribes currently make baskets. The majority of these individuals are in their 60s, 70s and 80s. In 1992, the Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance was formed to promote all aspects of this tradition from the gathering and preparation of brown ash and sweetgrass to actively promoting and marketing Maine Indian baskets.

(See Tribal Map)

	Sea Urchin Basket Mary Mitchell Gabriel Passamaquoddy National Heritage Fellow Loaned by Deborah Brooks
	Trinket Box Sylvia Gabriel Passamaquoddy Loaned by Deborah Brooks
	Sweetgrass Basket Carol Dana Penobscot Loaned by Carol Dana
	Sweet Grass Flat Lawrence “Billy” Shay Penobscot Loaned by Lawrence Shay
	Curly Bowl with standard diamond curls Madeline Tomer Shay Penobscot Loaned by Theresa Secord Hoffman
	Miniature Scale Basket Peter Neptune Passamaquoddy Loaned by Peter Neptune
	Miniature Pack Basket Richard Silliboy Mi’kmaq Loaned by Micmac Images
	Cradle with blueberry dyed splints Theresa Secord Hoffman Penobscot Loaned by Theresa Secord Hoffman
	Picnic Basket Jim Tomah Maliseet Loaned by Rosella J. Silliboy
	Potato Basket Jim Tomah Maliseet Loaned by Rosella J. Silliboy
	Potato Basket Aubrey Tomah Maliseet Loaned by Rosella J. Siliboy
	Sewing Basket Christine Nicholas Penobscot c. 1986 Loaned by Jean Camuso and Eric Brown
	Drum Basket Angela Barnes Passamaquoddy Loaned by Angela Barnes
	Laundry Basket Mary and Donald Sanipass Micmas Loaned by Micmac Images
	Corn Baskets Theresa Neptune Gardner Passamaquoddy Loaned by the Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance