I’ve been offered a pair of moccasins that are described as being early 20th c tourist. Anyone care to take a stab at what a good price to pay would be and tribe? They look Iroquois to me. Guessing their value is $100-$150 but would like to hear from others. They are complete and in pretty good shape so the value may be a bit higher?
Yes & No !! Iroquois....likely Mohawk ! Early 20th....... I can't say no...but they could be a bit later than that! The vamps are nice but not complex enuf to make them earlier. Honestly , they are not in good shape ! Compared to the one's above, they have too much bead loss, fabric loss, wear to the soles, and are out of shape !! These were danced........danced hard....and for a long time until they were replaced....or the dancer outgrew them....or stopped dancing ! I'd put $35 into these...only if you wanted a pair with some history to go on your shelf or compliment some other Iroquois beaded items .....otherwise there are so many more out there in better shape with more age to collect or resell.
The moccasins are poorly shaped .. the ankle cuffs being completely different , as are the shape of the toes. The beadwork on the right hand side slipper is completely off centre .. doesn't appear to be a lot of age to them, Many beads missing, I don't believe there is much value here ... Joy.
"The beadwork on the right hand side slipper is completely off centre That's the photo Joy.....they look smooshed !!!
The off centre beadwork is just a matter of getting the moccasin back into shape. The wear is more of an issue. If they were mine I would restore them, but then I like beadwork and I still have a stash of old beads.
Yep, I know. I used to have to moisten the leather on my Balkan and Turkish dance shoes before a show to be able to dance in them. Bulgarian shoes (not mine):
The dances are very nice too, often fast and invigorating. Bulgarian music has complicated rhythms which often change, making it difficult for some dancers. Since I never counted beats or steps but just followed the rhythm and the music, Bulgarian dances were my kind of thing. My shoes were too big though. The manager bought enough dance shoes in Bulgaria for everyone, but no small sizes. After slipping out of them a couple of times during performances, I was allowed to wear my own Croatian shoes instead. Like these, but without the tassles:
Thanks for your appraisal! I’m getting them for $20 so I’m happy with that. You’re right they aren’t in “good” shape, that was a poor choice of words. I see some in worse shape and some that are just pieces of moccasins sell so I meant good only relative to what I was thinking about at the moment which you had no way of knowing lol. I do have some other beaded leather pieces I’ll put them with for a while. Maybe sell or maybe not. Met a lady from a real big old family with multiple chock full properties. I bought a couple things from her and asked her to send me photos of any other stuff she wanted to get rid off. So I’m buying these and some other things. Its good to just show her I’m a real buyer and will hopefully get to look at better stuff as time goes on. She sadly said she sold most of the gold, including lots of pocket watch stuff to a cash for gold dude . So you think these were used in tribal dances rather than just sold to a tourist when new?
yes.....a tourist would value them....maybe even wear them around the house.....but a Mohawk would dance in them.....& I've seen 1st hand how rough that can be on mocs.... see that grass...after 3 days of competition dancing.....it ain't green no more !!!
Well that makes them cooler than them being worn from wearing them in the suburbs while doing house chores. These photos are awesome. Great to see the amazing modern bead work!
@J Dagger , I don't think you mentioned whether you would buy these to sell, or to keep. But in any case, it sounds like $20 is okay for buying these. And the discussion is interesting!