This object is on permanent display in the South Florida People & Environments exhibit, located in the “Indian People in South Florida Today” gallery.
Story
This is a man’s beaded shoulder bag made in the early 1800s. It’s very rare to have one this old that is in such great shape. Men wore these over the shoulder, with the pouch part resting on the opposite hip. They wore them on dress up occasions but they did carry various items in the pouch, such as tobacco, flint and steel for making fires, maybe a little whetstone for sharpening their knife. The bags are usually made of wool and beautifully decorated with many small beads. In this case, each shoulder strap terminates in three tabs with wavy designs and the pouch has curvilinear designs that touch one another and are almost intersecting. It has a triangular pouch flap, which is common in Seminole shoulder bags.
Bill Marquardt
Curator, South Florida Archaeology & Ethnography
Director, Randell Research Center
Florida Museum of Natural History