Featured Native or First People's Basket or Something else.

The Cancer Society Discovery Shop I go to asked me about this small covered basket. All I know about these things is what I read here from @2manybooks and @Taupou and others. I tried my darndest to figure out where this basket may have originated with no luck. I can't tell grass from any other material. Please would you help them out and share any thoughts. It's about 6 inches tall.

 

If, like me, you don't know what an oops basket is, but are intrigued by the name:

"An African Zulu grass woven basket that is known by the Zulu people as OOPS baskets or nut baskets. The nut baskets are small grass basket that are used for holding nuts, sweets or crisps and are generally crafted by the young Zulu Children from the age of about 5 years so that they keep learning the tradition of Zulu basket weaving. The Zulu nut grass baskets are often water tight and all the colors are natural, obtained by boiling roots,leaves,berries and bark of indigenous flora.

The patterns on the Zulu grass nut baskets symbolize different things. Triangle for Masculine. Diamond for Feminine. Double triangle forming hour glass shape for married man. Double diamond for Married woman and many other patterns represent the Zulu tribe. Every Zulu basket is made by hand, using indigenous materials and the type of baskets vary from area to area,depending on the availability of raw materials and the use to which the basket is to be put."
https://www.africancraftsmarket.com/products/african-woven-baskets/Zulu-nut-basket.html

 

it's the smaller version of the Zulu beer basket.....

 

Yep.

 

I so appreciate your detailed response and the manager of the Discovery Shop thanks you too.

 

Not 2manywords, I see Thank you.