Plateau Nez Perce Beaded Horse Pictorial Flat bag

late 19th century
11 3/4"h + shell handles x 11 1/4"

With the horse done in the earlier contour technique with background in the flat technique. Interestingly the maker outlines the bag in both light blue as well as the gold, running the stitch vertically against the horizontal field and thereby giving the grounding to the floral element in the top left. The delicate handling of the motif which is rendered in outstanding proportions, and the handsome shell handles give this bag make this band particularly strong.