trade blanket

trade blanket
Originally uploaded by megan_n_smith_99

so one of the things i get to do at my "real job" is take care of a collection of trade blankets. these were produced by Pendleton and other mills, starting from the late 1800s to the present. Pendleton is the only mill currently still making them, and the only mill to make it past the 2nd world war. These were originally made to trade to Native Americans, and you will hear people calling them Indian blankets, but they were not actually made by Native Americas. Some of the designs were inspired by Native American textiles, though. This one has a Teepee motif. This is kind of an unusual color combination so I rather like this one. It does not have a label so I am not sure which mill it was made by.