Lenape woven basket

This basket was made by an unidentified Lenape woman, who gave it to Mrs. Weiser on the Weiser farm near Delaware, Ohio, at the time of the forcible removal of the Lenape in 1824. The Lenape tribe are also known as the Delaware. American Indians were making baskets such as these long before Europeans discovered America. Different tribes had different basket-making traditions, based upon the materials available in their area. Baskets were valuable trade items--both utilitarian baskets such as this for the early settlers, and more elaborate baskets as souvenirs for tourists