Basketry was a very wide spread tradition in Native American cultures, so wide spread that most, if not all Native American cultures used basketry for one purpose or another in ancient times. Consequently many archeological sites contain baskets. Some of the oldest archeological sites with baskets are caves and shelters in Oregon, Nevada, Utah and the Great Basin region. The Great Basin region is one of the best preserving regions because of its dry climate. These sites contain examples of prehistoric coiled and twined basketry from up to 11,000 years ago. Other forms of twining such as mats and bags have been found as early as 9,000 years ago. Prehistoric examples of basketry are hard to find older than 11,000 years old because organic matter tends to decompose.
However archeologists have found impressions of baskets in rocks. A controversial finding of impressions of baskets was found in Medowcroft Rockshelter near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and could be up to 19,600 years old. Other, less controversial impressions have been found and dated later than the Medowcroft find. Basketry is so complex that it has taken many centuries to perfect. Since it is so widespread some archeologists think the people who crossed the Bering Strait possessed the skill of basketry. If this were true we should see basketry in the Old World. In Southeastern Europe impressions of baskets have been radiocarbon dated back to 25,000 and 27,000 years ago. These impressions, however are of twined baskets. This is why many archeologists believe that twined baskets came first.
Because its origins are so ancient, many Native American cultures associate basketry with their origin stories. Much like the Christian creation story, origin stories often contain how the world was formed, how people came to be or both.
A Pomo story describes Old Man or Marumda teaching women how to prepare basket materials, how to weave the baskets, how to prepare food and how to weave fishnets. He taught the men how to build dams in rivers to help catch fish.
A story from the Coos tells that the land was created by dropping five disks of soot, a split woven mat and a split basket into the ocean.
In a Yukama origin story woman prayed to Saghalee Tyee, a mythical being, for a way to please man. Saghalee Tyee breathed on her and gave her the skills of art and handiwork so that she could make many things including basketry.
A Navajo myth tells of when humans emerged onto the surface of the Earth. The twins found out how to live on the surface. One made many things out of clay and the other wove baskets out of reed.
In an origin tale by the Yuki On-coye-to wanted to understand how a far off star could emit light. He went there and he discovered a beautifully lit world with many people, but he could not find the light. He was allowed anywhere except the sweathouse which was for the sick. On the day of the great hunt On-coye-to feigned sickness and a council decided that he should be allowed to use the sacred sweathouse. Inside it he saw a blinding light. The light was coming from several suns hanging above him in baskets. When all the old men who were watching over him were asleep he took the sun that looked to be the brightest and he ran back to his world very quickly. When he returned, after many adventures, the hung the sun in the far east in the sky. It did not suit him there and he moved it a little higher, then a little higher. He is still moving it to this day.
There are many more origin stories that contain the basket.
Basketry is such an ancient tradition that it has been integrated into every part of life. Archeologists believe that the knowledge of basketry was brought to the Americas over the Bering Strait. Evidence for baskets dates back at least 11,000 years in North America. Because of its important role and ancient history many cultures have baskets in origin stories. [1]