Traditional Ute Cradle Board.
Ute (being the tribe) Cradle Board (or Papoose) made from leather, hand beaded, willow shade piece.
This item is very old and is a real talking piece, nowadays they have have found native skulls and have found that the back was flat, this being due to baby being carried in the cradle as their skulls were forming!!!
And here's something else, did you you know that that the nursery rhyme "Rock a Bye Baby on the tree tops, when the baby cries the cradle will rock"goes back to the natives when they hung their baby in the trees!!!!
The grandmas over in the States are still often seen with the grandchildren in cradles, some are extremely ornate nowadays.
This item was purchased in a trader store in Billings, Montana (this store is no longer there).
