pouch made with dyed work

Tobacco Pouch

The Lakota traditionally used dyed porcupine quills to ornament items such as tobacco pouches. Later, artists began to use glass…
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parkas made from sea mammal intestines

Parka

In the Arctic, people made water-repellent coats or parkas from sea mammal intestines. Most museum examples are stiff and flattened…
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Close up of the beaded vest to show the rows of tiny seed beads sewn to create two green and blue horses and two American Flags in red, white, blue and gold, all against a background of white created by even more seed beads

Beaded Vest

In the 1800s, Native Americans began to produce objects to sell to tourists to support themselves while living on reservations….
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Caribbean Monk Seal Bone photographed to show the pitted interior of the bone

Caribbean Monk Seal

Caribbean Monk Seals were last seen in the 1950s, in part because people overhunted them for oil and overfished their…
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collection of bones and shells photographed on a white background

Animal Remains: Warm Period

Archaeological sites can provide clues to past climate change, including warm periods with increased storm activity. These remains provide evidence…
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White's Bear-Dog Skull (Amphicyon longiramus) pressed flat and still in a thin plaster cast

White’s Bear-Dog

During excavations, paleontologists place fragile fossils inside plaster jackets to protect them for transport to the lab. Once there, they…
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Giant Ground Sloth Skull and Claw (Paramylodon harlani)

South American Species

Giant Armadillos and Ground Sloths came to North America from the south during the interchange. Like most “megafauna,” they became…
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Florida Rhino (Aphelops mutilus)

Rhinoceroses

Rhinos originated in North America 55–50 million years ago, and were common in Florida until their extinction ~5 million years…
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Rhinoceros Bone Bed (Menoceras)

Rhinoceros Bone Bed

Fossil evidence shows that the two-horned rhinoceros once roamed the plains of North America in great numbers. The bones and…
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