Basket

Vivian Harrison, “Stuyat”, is a member of the Yakama Nation. She is a tribal historian, storyteller and artist who teaches American Indian Cultural Art at the Heritage University in Toppenish, Washington. She also holds classes in different techniques of beading and basket weaving. The basket on display is a reproduction of the old container type of storage basket used to store cha’ lay, a salmon flour or sugar. Traditionally made from Tulsi or bulrush plants, they were disposable containers lined with salmon skins and packed with cha’ lay. The salmon could be stored in this way for long periods of time and were commonly used as a trade item. Tulsi grow in marshy wetlands and is harvested from the end of May until September.