Baby Carrier
ClassificationsClothing and Adornments-baby carriers
Culturepossibly
Miao
Culturepossibly
Yao
Date20th Century
Made AtChina, Asia
MediumCotton, shell and bead
Dimensions56 x 29 in. (142.2 x 73.7 cm)
Credit LineGift of Anne and Long Shung Shih
Object number2008.9.9
DescriptionThis is a cotton baby carrier from an as-of-yet untranslated subgroup of either the Miao or Yao culture of China. Here, from birth until children are old enough to walk, new mothers carry infants in wrapped textile baby carriers. While relatively plain carriers might be used while mothers engage in manual labor, highly ornate carriers for festive and ceremonial occasions—such as this object—are decorated with a wide selection of motifs and sometimes with inclusions of silver or coins. Carriers are mostly created and embroidered by young, unmarried women, but among some Miao groups baby carriers are instead made by a new mother’s family and presented to a her and her husband after a baby is one month old. A woman’s ability to create fine embroidery and textile work is seen as valuable to the community and especially to potential husbands and in-laws. Baby carriers and other embroidered work becomes part of a woman’s dowry. The reason why many carriers in museum collections are missing their straps is that the straps are believed to be repositories for the soul of the child the carrier held. They are generally kept and reused if a carried is retired.On View
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