| DESCRIPTION |
| <NOBR> Dance
Wedding Dance </NOBR> |
Dance played a very important role in Native American tribes. People danced for many occasions and ceremonies. Weddings, like the one on the image on the left, were usually very festive and Many tribes in many regions celebrated the harvest. One of the most important crops was corn, so the corn harvest was often celebrated through dance. Usually people danced and chanted to the beat of the drum. Dance was also used in many ceremonies such as the Sun dance and the Rain dance. Even shamans sometimes used dance to call the spirits to heal the sick and wounded. During these festivals the people painted their faces white to represent happiness. They danced, played games,and thank spirits for good harvest.
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| <NOBR> Pottery Indian Pottery
</NOBR> |
Indian pottery is a very old art. Some remains of ancient pottery was found to be as old as 300 B.C. This was found in Arizona. Indian pottery was glazed in fire and covered with clay strips. Indian pottery is usually made of clay that is dug out from the earth. Then the clay is put on tin sheets and left to dry. After it dries it is soaked in water and strained through the big screen. The next step is to add special sand that is sometimes called tuff to the mixture until it can be made into pottery. Indians use lap board to make their pieces. Pottery is fired. |
| Great Spirit Praying to the sun
|
The Plains Indians believed in the Great Spirit. The Indians believed the Great Spirit had power over all things including animals, trees, stones, and clouds. The earth was believed to be the mother of all spirits. The sun had great power also because it gave the earth light and warmth. The Plains Indians prayed individually and in groups. They believed visions in dreams came from the spirits. The medicine man or shaman was trained in healing the sick and interpreting signs and dreams. 
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| <NOBR> Potlatch Gathering and festival </NOBR> |
Potlatch was a party where the host would cater for hundreds of people in a show of wealth, giving them with food and gifts. The potlatch was such a huge event that organizing it could often ruin the host, and he would often be left with nothing and the potlatch ceremony could last up to 10 days!
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| Kachina Dolls Navajo Kachina | <NOBR>
The Pueblo thought Kachinas were spirits who returned with the clouds and rain to help their people. Pueblo Indians believed that these spirits once lived among the people, but people did not pay enough attention to them so they got mad. When they left they taught people to dance. So, Pueblo held ceremonies in which they asked the Kachinas to bring rain and make their crops grow. They used drums and rattles in the dances during the ceremonies. They often danced in masks and chanted. |
</NOBR> |
| <NOBR> Jewelry women with beaded necklace </NOBR> |
Native Americans made beautiful jewelry. Before the Europeans arrived, many tribes had alike jewelry. This was because the things used for making jewelry was also used for trading. They traded beads, shells, silver, turquoise and amber. There are two types of jewelry: beadwork and metalwork. For beadwork, they carved shells, stones, copper, and wood. They beaded pieces of leather, their clothing and decorations. Metalwork was not very developed before settlers came. They would just etch the metal. But when Europeans came they taught Native Americans how to do metals and then the metalwork jewelry really developed. |
| <NOBR> Legends
Legends often used animals </NOBR> |
Native Americans were great storytellers. They had many legends. They told stories that taught lessons and were passed from one generation to another. These legends help save the culture and traditions of many tribes. Some legends talk about heroes. There are also stories about tricksters. Here are links to some very cool legends: http://www.thewildwest.org/native_american/legends/index.html
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| Medicine Medicine Pipe |
Native Americans knew a lot about healing and natural medicine. The medicine included herbs, but also spirits! Native Americans believed that people should live in harmony with the nature and you heal by returning people to that harmony. Most of the tribes had special "medicine" men and women who did the healing. Sometimes they are called shamans. They used lots of different herbs to heal. These herbs were often fixed as tea, but sometimes they were burned and the smoke was a healer. They also did cleansing or purification. They did this most often in the sweat lodge. This lodge is like sauna. They were small houses in which they burned cedar or willow. They were burned over the stones which would get hot. Then they would throw water on to make steam. Native Americans believed that the smoke and steam will clean them off diseases. Native Americans also had lots of ceremonies that were about healing. While they may seem strange, these traditions kept Native Americans healthy for centuries.
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