Look what fell in my lap – a great white oak basket, from Kim L, via Martha. thanks to both.
It’s a large, heavy-duty basket. All white oak. Some things about it remind me of the Taghkanic baskets from eastern New York. Very thick rims, large stout weavers and uprights. The bottom seems different from what I know about those baskets, but my knowledge is limited to the book Legend of the Bushwhacker Basket by Martha Wetherbee and Nathan Taylor. It’s about a foot high to the rim, and about 17″ in diameter. Here’s some views:
The double-woven bottom is reinforced with added splints that are then slipped into the weaving on the sides of the basket. That might be why this basket is still around. Very tough.
While we were out at Bill Coperthwaite’s place, I noticed a nice white oak basket there too. I got to look at this one with Louise Langsner, who made a slew of white oak baskets over the years, before switching to willow…this one seems to have had a lid that would have fit inside the small rim woven above the actual rim. It’s hard to see, but every upright has been split so the lashing can be very closely spaced.
Here you see the bottom is filled in with extra splints. Makes me think sewing basket, or something like that. When a basket’s bottom is filled in like that, little things don’t get lost out the spaces in between the weaving.
One of our stops on the mini-tour was Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in New Gloucester, Maine. We saw some Shaker ash baskets there, and a nice large round white oak one too, but no photography allowed. Drat.
PETER FOLLANSBEE: JOINER’S NOTES 
Very impressive!
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Soo beautiful…and expertly made, and in White Oak too!
Very nice baskets. I’ll learn to weave one someday I hope. >
Lucky dog, lucky dog!
It may be time, Peter, to make Maine your home. Birds aplenty. Good folk. Fine fooding and abundant nature in which to play and create….we’ll keep the light on!
You say “still around”; could you guess-imate the age please?
No photos? HA! As if someone were going to be able to duplicate fine work from just a photo. I do respect one’s attempt at control of their own intellectual property, but anyone who has done a good job of making something realizes the distance between inspiration and completion of an inspired piece is much more than copies of designs can steal. Also think those most capable of “copying” can recall as much from close inspection as they need to adapt techniques or replicate innovative patterns.