Little "Indian" Corn Basket "5"- Pam Outdusis Cunningham: Penobscot for Sale

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Little "Indian" Corn Basket "5"- Pam Outdusis Cunningham: Penobscot For Sale

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Little "Indian" Corn Basket "5"- Pam Outdusis Cunningham: Penobscot:
$165.00

Pam Cunningham's "Indian" corn baskets seem to be the top customer favorites. Easy to understand when you see this "Little Indiancorn basket" by Pam Cunningham, master Penobscot basketmaker. This is the 5th "Little Indian Corn Basket" by Pam I have offered in the past 4 years. Pam makes at least 5 different varieties."Indian" corn is the term for several related corn varieties generally used to grind into corn flour or cornmeal, sometimes used for popcorn. It is starchier than the sweet corn varieties we generally eat right off the cob. Pam's ancestors grew some types of this "Indian" corn on the banks of Walker's Pond - a beautiful little lake not 10 miles from my home. The colorful mix of kernels on one cob makes it attractive and it is now not only grown for corn meal - but for fall decorations!

Pam adds light blue, dark purple, teal, maroon and yellow kernels/curlique curls to this little corn cob - along with the natural ash color ones. There are pulled back natural ash color "husks" atop the basket lid. In this basket Pam adds a bit of color into the husk, inserting some narrow ash splints of each color in the cob at the very top along with the natural splints. She has also "folded" over some of the husks making them even more realistic.

Each of Pam's corn baskets differ in the color and placement of the individual kernel/curls.This ear of corn/basket bottom is covered with 108 small round "curlicue" curls. (The curls get smaller at the bottom of the basket). This one is similar size to recent ones I have offered BUT has 1 additional color of kernels and has 12 more kernels (108 vs 96 of last one) The ear of corn is 3" to it's rim, the lid/husk is 3.5" long - making total length 6.5". The middle of the "ear" is 1 1/8" in diameter, the curls add a bit to it's girth. 1.25" diameter at lid - slightly tapered to bottom of basket which is .75" diameter. On an ash splint tucked into the inside of the lid /husk Pam has signed "Pam outdusis", added the date (2022) outdusis is Pam's Penobscot name, it means Little Pathway. Be sure to view all photos in the slideshow above to see the various colors and placement of "kernels".

This small size of "basketry corn" is about the size of some varieties grown by some Native American tribes for popping corn and for grinding into cornmeal. After the photos of this little corn basket - see a photo of several actual ears of Indian corn .... such variety and mix of colors ...

Made of brown ash, the traditional material of Maine and Eastern Canadian basketmakers, this has plain tidal sweetgrass wrapping the rim of the basket and lid - and the braid of sweetgrass tying the ends of the husk.

Second to last photo is of Pam dancing the traditional "shawl dance" in not so traditional shorts at the 2019 Penobscot Nation Community Day Festival. (photo is also a snapshot of Pam's personality - very traditional in many ways - totally modern in others) Last photo is a pic of Pam's great-grandmother, ssipsis, selling her baskets about 1920. To make some of her basket forms Pam uses some of ssipsis's basket making tools - gauges, crooked knives and wooden molds. Be sure to view some of Pam's other baskets in this store.