Beaded doll with buckskin dress and fringed arms and thongs across the skirt front / Native American; Sioux
Essay/Description
Female. Beaded buckskin dress with fringed arms and thongs across the skirt front. Beaded lane at the hem. Beaded leggings. Beaded facial features. Human hair.
Dolls were typically made for children to play with and were made to resemble humans, including tribal clothing and designs. Through play, the dolls “were used to communicate tribal values, practices, and customs” (Cotherman 2007, 24). Children learned how to prepare food, hunt, care for children, and make clothing by imitating adult behaviors in play. The clothing the dolls wore reflected the designs and patterns of that tribe or family tradition and often resembled human clothing the maker would create (Cotherman 2007).