Parfleche
Parfleche, which will be referred to from here on as Wizipaŋ in the Dakota/Lakota language, is a lightweight, rawhide container traditionally created and designed by Plains Native American women. Dakota/Lakota (D/Lakota) women painted colorful geometric designs inspired by nature, and a skilled artist was an important asset to her family and tribe. These durable containers were useful for carrying food, clothing, and personal items, as the Plains Natives were nomadic. The word parfleche comes from French fur traders, meaning “to parry an arrow,” reflecting the tough hide’s use for shields.
Wizipaŋ is designed to carry all types of objects. It is lightweight, weatherproof, and essential for horse-based cultures. D/Lakota wizipaŋ appear in three common shapes: box, tube, and flat/folded. Each shape is meant for the objects it carries. For example, an envelope shape would be ideal for travelling and storing dried food like wasná (pemmican in English: dried meat, often bison or elk, mixed with fat and sometimes berries). A cylinder shaped wizipaŋ was used to carry the carefully rolled, sacred war bonnet.
Although many tribes make wizipaŋ, it has been argued that it may have originated on the Northern Plains due to its inseparable association with the horse. Additionally, its design bears distinct woodlands culture characteristics, though wizipaŋ are made typically from bison rawhide – a Plains development.
The painted wizipaŋ most likely evolved from the painted bison robe. Some of the earliest surviving examples hint at the geometric designs of painted bison robes in their most basic format. It was based on an affinity that women had with the box-and-border designs taken from women’s robes.
Early painted wizipaŋ (prior to 1850) have a limited palette of red, green, and black, with black used to mark the outline of geometry. As styles evolved, green replaced black as the predominant color counterbalancing red. From 1850 to 1880, yellow and blue were added. Natural pigments could be sacred, and some required great skill to make. Read more about D/LakotaColors.
The decoration is made by “painting” the hide with a “cookie” (paint) made of earth based pigment, minerals and hide glue made by extracting the adhesive found in animal bones and skin. Red, yellow, white and black paint came from dirt, plants, and animal parts. Bones and sticks were used as brushes and turtle shells held paint. White traders brought paintbrushes, brightly colored paints, ledger paper and other materials. Commercial pigments were commonplace by 1875.