What is this rope made of?
Who made it, and where were they from?
When do you think it was made?
Answers:
What is this rope made of?
This rope is made of cattail! Cattail is a plant indigenous to North America, where it grows in wetland areas. Cattail has traditionally been an important plant to many groups of American Indians, with a great many uses such as medicine, food, and shelter.
Who made it, and where were they from?
This rope was in fact made by local Coast Salish Indians! Coast Salish is not a single tribe, but rather many nations that are grouped under one heading due to geographic, ethnic, and linguistic similarities. Historically they often had contact with each other, but their cultures and lifeways were and are distinctly different.
When do you think it was made?
While there is no surviving record of who specifically braided this rope, we know they were from the Pacific Northwest coastal area, and that it was made sometime before 1930.
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