Human-Hair Bifurcated Tumplines from Old Man Cave, Utah

Abstract

Unwrapping a bundle of Basketmaker II textiles from Old Man Cave disclosed two examples of a previously undocumented textile form: bifurcated tumplines. At more than twice the width of standard tumplines, these warp-faced plain weave bands of human hair cordage have one flat end, with the other splitting into two separate parallel bands—one longer and the other shorter. Both narrow bands terminate in tumpline suspension loops. Strains, breaks, and repairs indicate that these textiles served to carry loads. Rather than suspending the weight from the head and resting it on the back, this tumpline suspended weight in front with the textile draped over the shoulder. Knowledge of this new tumpband form allowed identification of an additional example in a museum. Radiocarbon dating confirms the Basketmaker II temporal affiliation. Final use of the Old Man Cave bifurcated tumplines was as a pair and likely related to transporting bodies for burial.

Al desenvolver un paquete de textiles Basketmaker II de Old Man Cave se encontraron dos ejemplos de una forma textil previamente indocumentada: tumplines bifurcados. Con más del doble del ancho de las mechas estándar, estas bandas de cordón de cabello humano de tejido liso con caras de urdimbre tienen un extremo plano, y el otro se divide en dos bandas paralelas separadas, una más larga y la otra más corta. Ambas bandas estrechas terminan en bucles de suspensión en forma de columpio. Esfuerzos, roturas y reparaciones indican que estos textiles sirvieron para transportar cargas. En lugar de suspender el peso de la cabeza y apoyarlo en la espalda, este tumpline suspendió el peso al frente con el tejido sobre el hombro. El conocimiento de esta nueva forma de tumpband permitió identificar un ejemplo adicional en un museo. La datación por radiocarbono confirma la afiliación temporal de Basketmaker II. El uso final de las tumplines bifurcadas de Old Man Cave fue en pareja y probablemente relacionado con el transporte de cuerpos para el entierro.

Keywords:

• Basketmaker II
• tumplines
• textiles
• human hair
• Old Man Cave
• cordage
• weaving
• Cedar Mesa

Acknowledgements

The authors want to thank Dr. Christine Humphrey, Research and Collections Associate with the Department of Textiles, Merchandising, and Fashion Design at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for help in fiber identification. We also thank Jonathan Till for facilitating study of the textile (ECPR 8264.1) from Turkey Pen Ruin in the collections of the Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum. Francis E. Smiley and an anonymous reviewer provided helpful comments for revision of the draft.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.