cradleboards
Indigenous baby carriers
Cradleboards are traditional infant carriers used by many Indigenous peoples of North America.
The baby is secured to a flat board, often padded and decorated, allowing the parent to carry the child on the back or prop them upright nearby while working.
Design varies by tribe and region: The museum displayed Navajo and Lakota cradleboards side by side.
Craft of shaping lumber
- handcraftedMade manually, not machined
- carvingShaping by cutting away
- weavingInterlacing strands into fabric
- beadworkStrung ornament craft
lacing · leatherwork · buckskin · rawhide · willow · birchbark · sinew · awl
Wrapping babies snugly
- carryingHolding and moving
- securingMaking firmly fixed
- bindingLegally or morally required
- strappingMuscular and hale
backpack · sling · wrap · bundling · positioning · support · portable · hands-free
Indigenous child or carrier
- NavajoSouthwestern indigenous people
- LakotaWestern Sioux people
- ApacheSouthwestern indigenous nation
- OjibweAlgonquian-speaking indigenous nation
Hopi · tribal · Native American · indigenous · First Nations · ancestral · heritage · ceremony
Infant just delivered
- babyVery young child
- nursingMedical caretaking profession
- lullabySoothing song for babies
- soothingReducing distress or discomfort
calming · sleeping · naptime · rocking · comforting · bonding · motherhood · infancy
Guarding against harm
- shieldingProtecting from harm
- cushioningSoftening force or fall
- postureBody position, alignment
- immobilizationPreventing movement entirely
head support · stability · enclosure · padding · safeguarding · security · snugness · containment
woodworking
Craft of shaping lumber
- handcraftedMade manually, not machined
- carvingShaping by cutting away
- weavingInterlacing strands into fabric
beadwork · lacing · leatherwork · buckskin · rawhide · willow · birchbark · sinew · awl · tanning
swaddling
Wrapping babies snugly
strapping · backpack · sling · wrap · bundling · positioning · support · portable · hands-free · transport
papoose
Indigenous child or carrier
Ojibwe · Hopi · tribal · Native American · indigenous · First Nations · ancestral · heritage · ceremony · rituals
newborn
Infant just delivered
soothing · calming · sleeping · naptime · rocking · comforting · bonding · motherhood · infancy · snug
protection
Guarding against harm
- shieldingProtecting from harm
- cushioningSoftening force or fall
- postureBody position, alignment
head support · immobilization · stability · enclosure · padding · safeguarding · security · snugness · containment · positioning
- Native Craftsnative crafts, moccasins, beaded moccasins, dreamcatchers, war bonnet
- tribal artifactstribal artifacts, ceremonial regalia, tribal jewelry, tribal patterns, woven baskets
- UteIgnacio, tribal lands, reservation lands, Colorado, Utah
cradleboardsstrollers
Wheeled seats for babies
baby slings · baby carriages · prams · buggies · pushchairs