Sash

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

An artist finger wove the chevron motifs on this exceptionally large and finely crafted sash, emphasizing the pattern through the incorporation of individual strands of white beads. Both women and men wore sashes of this type tied around the waist on dress occasions; men also wore them across the chest as bandoliers and used smaller versions as turbans. Although made of trade materials, sashes such as this one continued earlier weaving techniques.

The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.

Metropolitan Museum of Art