Lot 422
A Georgia or South Carolina Gullah Sweetgrass Cake Basket, c. 1880, covered, round with flat lid, coiled reed and string design, height 9 in., diameter 17 1/2 in. Note: Only in the past thirty years or so has the craft of basketry become widely acknowledged as an art form. With its roots in Africa, Gullah basketry came to America by the enslaved Africans brought to the Lowcountry of South Carolina and Georgia. Whereas many of the baskets made were purely functional and therefore were discarded once they became damaged or worn, in the 1980s, museums began collecting both work baskets and fancy baskets, admiring them for their shapes, the tightness and regularity of the rows, and the function they served. In the book Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art, Theodore Rosengarten states: "It is the way of the world that as coiled baskets have lost their usefulness and given way to metal, wood, and plastic containers, they have gained stature and value as objects of admiration." In this way the baskets that are so rooted in the Gullah culture have become elevated to the status of works of art. Reference: Rosengarten, Dale, et. al. Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art. New York: Museum for African Art, 2008.
Shipping Options
Accepted Forms of Payment:
Neal Auction Company
You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 0% and any applicable taxes and shipping.