Pictures to be inserted - Needles were made of bone. The hole was in the sharp end.
| Woman designed,
cut and sewed all the clothes using knives made out of
bone ot shell. Needles were usually made from bird
bones..Like the needles for modern sewing machines, these
bird bone needles had the hole for the thread in the
sharp end. Needles came in a number of different sizes. Where did thread come from? Thread for sewing was made from animal sinew. If a heavier line was needed it wes cut from the hide of a large animal such as deer or elk. Nettle fibers were dried and rolled into string. The was very strong. Nettle fiber line was used for fish nets as well as well as for sewing. Human hair was also used to make rope. The hair was spun together with strips of nettle. Because long strands of hair made better rope then short strands, girls and woman let their hair grow long before it was thinned. Another source of thread was animal intestine. Animal intestine made a strong, flexible rope. The intestine was cut into strips and stretched befor it was spun. Picture to be inserted here - String was often made by rolling nettle fibres together. For stronger string human hair and/or long strands of cedar bark might be rolled in. |
See a slide show of Nisga'a Artifacts
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