Moccasins

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Women constructed each delicate yet functional center-seam moccasin from a single piece of dyed hide. This pair of moccasins, likely worn on special occasions, features elaborate floral and zigzag patterns. They are embroidered with tiny trade beads strung on a cotton thread with a stiffened tip and then secured to the hide with a needle and thread. The golden beads on the toes are metal, a valuable trade good, and the silk lining allowed the wearer to reveal a glint of luxury fabric at the ankle.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art