Artifacts We Don't Dig Up

Stuff Found in the Home

Lesson objective: Students will describe the physical and social significance of artifacts.

This activity is sort of like "Show and Tell" for it centers on artifacts found in the home. (Some students might need to visit an antique or junk store to find something suitable and that's perfectly all right.) The range of artifacts can be so overpowering that the teacher may want choose a theme and have her students find something which fits it. For example, the lesson plan might focus on artifacts used for comfort in sleeping. Everyone has sheets, pillows, blankets and/or quilts of some sort at home. Some will be new; others old. Other themes might focus on cooking ware, eating ware, toys, etc.

Ask each student to 1) find an object fitting the theme at home, 2) to find out as much of the artifact's history as they can and record it on a report form. They should not measure, weigh or fill out anything except the "historical" items on the form:

Its provenience (history)
who made it
what was its original use
how is it used today (heirloom or ordinary use)
who owns it now
who knows the most about it.

(Parents and grandparents will be good oral informants), and 3) to bring it in on the day chosen for this lesson. Note:A parent or grandparent might be willing or even eager to explain the history of their child's object in class. This is good, but be sure enough time is available for the whole lesson.

To give you an idea how a lesson like this would work, look at these images of quilts made by African Americans. The images are from:

Anne Yentsch's personal collection.
Gladys-Marie Fry's Stitched from the Soul: Slave Quilts from the Ante-Bellum South (New York City: Dutton Studio Books, 1990).
Laurel Horton's Quiltmaking in America: Beyond the Myths (Nashville: Rutledge Hill Press, 1994).
Jennie A Chinn's "African American Quiltmaking Traditions: Some Assumptions Reviewed" in Barbara Brackman et al, Kansas Quilts & Quilters (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1993).
Robert Shaw's America's Traditional Crafts (Hugh lauter Levin Assocs, Inc., 1993).

The student's name beside each quilt is imaginary so you can see how the lesson will work. The descriptions are based on personal information from Dr. Yentsch and information in the books cited.

African American Quilts

Student Object Description
Shawnita Pieced quilt made by Phyllis, a slave imported from the Congo in 1818. She was the plantation cook and craftsperson with carpentry and blacksmithing skills. Alphonso Biggs collection, Columbus, GA (page 110 of Stitched from the Soul)
Jessica Quilted by Frances and Ellen, two slaves belonging to Mrs. Cynthia Evelyn Bush. private collection (page 18 of Stitched from the Soul)
Thomas Applique quilt top with an embroidered date of March 19, 1852. Made by "Yellow Bill", a male slave belonging to William Dean of New Orleans. The floral cutouts in the center panel represent snakes, a source of life and symbol of fertility, and of the rainbow in African mythology. Gladys-Marie Fry collection. (page 76 of Stitched from the Soul)
Latikia Made by Johanna Davis between 1845 and 1853. She may have been a free artisan and not a slave. Avery Institute, College of Charleston, SC (page 33 of Stitched from the Soul)
George Detail of a crazy quilt. Begun by Hannah before the Civil War and finished by her daughter, Emma in 1895. Carson House, Old Fort, NC (page 31 of Stitched from the Soul)
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Student	Object	Description
Shawnita		Pieced quilt made by Phyllis, a slave imported from the Congo in 1818. She was the plantation cook and craftsperson with carpentry and blacksmithing skills. Alphonso Biggs collection, Columbus, GA (page 110 of Stitched from the Soul)
Jessica		Quilted by Frances and Ellen, two slaves belonging to Mrs. Cynthia Evelyn Bush. private collection (page 18 of Stitched from the Soul)
Thomas		Applique quilt top with an embroidered date of March 19, 1852. Made by "Yellow Bill", a male slave belonging to William Dean of New Orleans. The floral cutouts in the center panel represent snakes, a source of life and symbol of fertility, and of the rainbow in African mythology. Gladys-Marie Fry collection. (page 76 of Stitched from the Soul)
Latikia		Made by Johanna Davis between 1845 and 1853. She may have been a free artisan and not a slave. Avery Institute, College of Charleston, SC (page 33 of Stitched from the Soul)
George		Detail of a crazy quilt. Begun by Hannah before the Civil War and finished by her daughter, Emma in 1895. Carson House, Old Fort, NC (page 31 of Stitched from the Soul)