Vintage Oval Charleston Gullah Sweetgrass Flower Basket

Up for auction is a lovely vintage oval basket with a long looped handle woven by one of the skilled weavers of the Charleston, SC area. When you visit Charleston, you can still see the ladies selling their handwoven baskets of all shapes and sizes. I love the flattish oval shape this basket has. The basket would have been advertised as a flower basket, and would have been sold to a tourist lady in the middle-to-latter years of the 20th century. It features a graceful arching handle made with three coils of sweetgrass, so it is quite sturdy for its size. This attractive basket makes a beautiful piece for display or could still be used for its original purpose.

The basket is a nice medium size for one of this type, measuring 8" x 5" across at the rim and 5¼" deep - a full 16" to the top of the handle. It is in great shape for its age. As you can see from the photos, it looks like at one point someone did use it for a dried flower arrangement because you can see remnants of some kind of florist fixative on the inside of the bottom of the basket, but this doesn't interfere with this basket's awesome display quality. And I am happy to report that there are no missing wraps, damaged coils, or any other damage whatever. See photos, as they give a true picture of the basket's condition. The basket is old enough that the palmetto wraps have lost their greenish color and begun to turn a golden brown with age. A beautiful American folk-art piece!

Additional Notes: I will be happy to provide discounted shipping for multiple items. Please don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions, and please take a look at my other auctions I'm listing today to see more old baskets

Click here to see my other listings.

Click here to read my eBay guide on Indian baskets.

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On Oct-06-07 at 11:49:43 PDT, seller added the following information:

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