Apache Knee High Boot Moccasins with Toe Tabs and Beaded Star Motif

Native American, Apache. A pair of knee-high boot moccasins of soft tan hide. Each tall shaft is folded over at the top into a deep cuff that shows the rougher flesh side of the skin. A long fringe of cut hide runs down the outer seam from the cuff to the heel. The hard soles, likely rawhide, are stitched to the uppers and curve up at the toes in the pointed tips typical of Apache footwear. Thin hide thongs wrap the ankles to keep the shafts snug. Below the cuff, each boot has a single beaded four-pointed star worked in white seed beads with a dark blue outline. The star's open center leaves a small square of bare hide. The motif is perhaps a reference to the four directions. The knee-high boot moccasin is one of the best-known forms of Apache dress. Its tall, soft shaft protected the legs from brush, thorn, and rock in the deserts and mountains of the Southwest. It could be worn pulled up to the knee or, as here, folded into a cuff. The upturned, pointed toe is a typical Apache feature. Accounts often say it shielded the foot from cactus spines and stones. The thick rawhide sole, sewn separately to the upper, was built to last on hard ground. Among the Apache, high-top moccasins are most closely tied to women's dress. They are still worn at the girls' coming-of-age ceremony, called the Sunrise Dance among the Western Apache, along with a fringed hide dress. Beadwork on these boots is often minimal, a few small motifs on the shaft or toe, so that the hide and fringe do most of the decorative work. That restraint sets them apart from the fully beaded footwear of the Plains. By the mid-20th century, Apache makers were producing boot moccasins both for their own communities and for collectors and traders. The form changed little over that time. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. Item # 206364

Estimate:$300

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