A Bag Worth a Pony: The Art of the Ojibwe Bandolier Bag

Over the years, non-Indian collectors and ethnographers, struck by the bags’ cultural significance and visual appeal, bought them up. Today, there are hundreds of bags in museums around the world, but not so many in the hands of community members. In "A Bag Worth a Pony", Marcia G. Anderson shares the results of thirty years of study, in which she learned from the talented bead artists who keep the form alive, from historical records, and from the bags themselves.

Anderson examines the history, forms, structure, and motifs of the bags, giving readers the tools to understand a bag’s makeup and meaning. She also offers a tour of Minnesota’s seven Ojibwe reservations, showing the beautiful beaded bags associated with each along with the personal insights of seven master beadworkers.

Reviews

"Just like the beaded bags that form the focus of this magnificent new study, Marcia G. Anderson's book, A Bag Worth a Pony has clearly been a labor of love, presenting research carried out over several decades. . . .This extraordinary 277-page publication is impeccably well researched, and lavishly illustrated throughout with a wealth of color images of some of the finest extant beaded bandolier bags in museum and private collections, and a mass of historic photos of bags in use, both indigenous and non-Native." - Whispering Wind Magazine

"Beautifully illustrated, carefully researched, and sensitively written, A Bag Worth a Pony is filled with valuable information about Ojibwe bandolier bags—gashkibidaagang—one of the great glories of Native North American beaded art and an important part of Ojibwe identity. The author uses historical writings, photographs, contemporary interviews, and analysis of technique and designs to accurately place the bags within their communities. Above all, Anderson conveys the spirit behind the bags by honoring the superb artistry of their (predominantly female) makers." - Lois Sherr Dubin, author of The History of Beads: 100,000 BC to the Present

"A Bag Worth a Pony reveals the story behind the Ojibwe bandolier bag, which proliferated throughout the assimilation era when Ojibwe and other Native people struggled to maintain their cultural traditions. Over several decades, Minnesota historian Marcia Anderson interviewed several bead artists whose voices teach us more about the significance of this enduring practice and the strength of a people."

About the Author

Marcia Anderson was curator of the Minnesota Historical Society's museum collections for 30 years.