The collection consists of thrity-two (32) watercolor drawings of Zuni architecture, basketry and pottery created by or for Frank Hamilton Cushing. There are also a few drawings of Iroquoian and South American pottery. The drawings are numbered 1-55 (some drawings are missing) and may have been used to accompany a lecture given by Cushing. They were the basis of the illustrations in Cushing's article "A Study of Pueblo Pottery as Illustrative of Zuñi Culture Growth" in the 4th Bureau of Ethnology Annual Report. The descriptions and figure numbers below reference the published illustrations in that report.
1. A Navajo hut. (Figure 490)
2. Plan of pueblo structure of lava. (Figures 491, 492, and 493)
3. Plan of pueblo structure of lava. (Figures 496 and 497)
4. A typical cliff dwelling. (Similar to Figure 498). The verso of this drawing has partial illustrations of a vase (labeled "Mound Ms.") and a design (labeled "Peru").
5. Gourd vessel enclosed in wicker. (Figure 500)
7. Zuni earthen ware roasting tray. (Figure 502)
8. Havasupai boiling basket. (Figure 503)
9. Sketches illustrating the manufacture of spirally coiled basketry. (Figures 504 and 505)
10. Sketches illustrating the manufacture of spirally coiled basketry. (Figure 506)
11. Typical basket decorations. (Figures 507, 508 and 509)
12. Terraced lozenge decoration or "double-splint-stitch forms" (Figures 510-511)
13. Double splint stitch. (Figures 512-513)
14. Diagonal parallel-line decoration. (Figure 514)
15. Splints at neck of unfinished basket. (Figure 515)
16. Corrugated decorations to repeat bsketry forms preceding. (Figures 516 and 517)
17. Cooking pot of corrugated ware, showing conical projections near rim. (Figure 518)
18. Cooking pot of corrugated ware, showing modified projections near rim. (Figure 519)
19. Wicker water bottle showing double loops for suspension. (Figure 520)
20. Water bottle of corrugated ware showing double handle. (Figure 521)
21. Water bottle of corrugated ware, showing plain bottom.(Figure 522)
22. Food trencher of wicker work. (Figure 523)
23. Food trencher of wicker work, inverted as used in forming food bowls of earthen ware (Figure 524)
24. Food trencher of wicker work, inverted as used in forming food bowls of earthen ware (Figure 525)
39. Example of pueblo painted ornamentation. (Figure 542)
40. Amazonian basket decorations. (Figures 543 and 544)
45. Double lobed or hunter canteen. (Figure 550)
46. Painting of deer (Figure 551); painting of sea-serpent (Figure 552).
47. The fret of basket decoration (Figure 553)
48. The fret of pottery decoration (Figure 554); Scroll as evolved from fret in pottery decoration (Figure 555).
52. Rectangular type of earthen vessel. (Figure 561)
54. Iroquois bark vessel. (Figure 563)
55. Porcupine quill decoration (Figure 564)
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Biographical Note:
Frank Hamilton Cushing (1857-1900) was curator of the ethnological department of the United States National Museum and an ethnologist for the Bureau of American Ethnology (1876-circa 1886), best known for his work at Zuni.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 3300
Variant Title:
Previously titled: 31 drawings for Cushing's Zuni lecture
Publication Note:
The drawings in this collection were the basis of the illustrations in:
Cushing, Frank Hamilton. "A Study of Pueblo Pottery as Illustrative of Zuñi Culture Growth." Fourth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1882-1883. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1886. pp. 467-521.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
