UNIDENTIFIED LORETTE HURON ARTIST
Finger Woven Sash, mid 19th century
wove and dyed wool, 72 x 5.75 x 0.25 in (182.9 x 14.6 x 0.6 cm), measurement reflect length without fringe, with: 128 in (325.1 cm)

Provenance
Private Collection, Quebec City;
A Montreal Collection.

With the long twisted braids of tassels revealing the number of colours before even inspection of the sash itself, one has to marvel at the complexity involved in its creation. Utilizing imported wool from European traders, the finger weaving of these sashes was done in two stages, from the centre towards each end, using a single peg as the starting point for each side. This practice creates the subtle seam line running across the centre of the sash, also creating the slightly larger band of red in the middle of the mirrored zigzags. Also known as the ceinture fléchée (French for “arrowed sash”), this beautiful type of sash would be used as a belt by both men and women, and occasionally to bundle various items as needed. It is considered part of the cultural heritage of French Canadians and Métis in Canada.

References: T.J. Brasser, Bo-jou, Neejee!, pl. 116. For a Lorette Huron ceinture perlée (with beads) see Ruth B. Phillips, Patterns of Power: The Jasper Grant Collection and Great Lakes Indian Art of the Early Nineteenth Century, (Kleinburg: McMichael Canadian Collection, 1984), cat. 59, p. 58. For an early look at Huron clothes, see F.G. Speck, “Notes on the Material Culture of the Huron.” American Anthropologist, (13: 2), 1911, p. 208–228. For another example of a woven Lorette Huron sash, see First Arts Auction, November 2021, Lot 31.