| This is a technical study of pre-1856 Eastern Woodlands quillwork dyes, prompted by the observation that discussions of Native North American dyestuffs have been ancillary to larger or "western" anthropological studies, which has perpetuated the categorization and distinctly different historical treatment of ethnographic versus fine art by scholars. Using existing literature reports for guidance during method development, an analysis method based on fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was developed for the identification of probable dyes used within the Eastern Woodlands culture area. By developing a blotter swab approach to sample acquisition, LC-MS analysis of museum collections was possible without requiring the physical removal of a sample from the object, thus permitting scientific examination of the quillwork in accordance with the objectives and preferred analysis modes identified by Native communities, museums, and scholars. Fifty-three objects housed by three major North American ethnographic museums were analyzed, with a total number of 126 samples of eight colors of quillwork.;For the first time, an objective evaluation of the body of Eastern Woodlands quillwork dye literature has been undertaken. Based on the findings of this study, the persistent characterization of Native North American dye technology as primitive or otherwise inferior to contemporary Euroamerican technology has been challenged. Colorants identified on quillwork analyzed suggest that Native North American dye technology from Contact to 1856 was instead based on a sophisticated understanding of natural dye chemistry. Further, the persistence of indigenous North American colorants and general lack of colorants associated with European dyes throughout the approximately 250 years of quillwork considered in this study is evidence of an uninterrupted material culture tradition that is at odds with the sense of acculturation implied by the dye literature. |
