UNIDENTIFIED ARTIST, CREE-MÉTIS
Pair of Embroidered Mittens, c. 1860s
tanned hide, trade cloth, and silk thread, each, approx: 12.25 x 6.25 x 1.25 in (31.1 x 15.9 x 3.2 cm)
unsigned;
finely decorated to the front, cuff, and thumb with vining and blossoming flowers;
the inside lined with undyed [?] and red trade cloth.

Provenance
Private Collection, Manitoba;
A Montreal Collection.

The prevalent use of floral motifs in their beadwork earned the Métis the moniker the "Flower Beadwork People." This same thought can be applied to their embroidery as well. Combining patterns borrowed from First Nations beaders and 1800s French-Canadian embroidery, these mittens show a skilled and patient hand. Embroidered straight into the soft hide, the fine, individual stitches are the giveaway that these spectacular mittens were not just meant to have a laid soutache or trim, but rather were destined to display a grand design, the result of many hours of expert needlework and artistry.

References: For a similar example see Ralph T. Coe, The Responsive Eye: Ralph T. Coe and the Collecting of American Indian Art, (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003), cat. 56, p. 130. For more examples of Cree-Metis beadwork and embroidery, see Lois S. Dubin, Floral Journey: Native North American Beadwork, (Los Angeles: Autry National Center of The American West, 2014), pp. 126-127.