Status
Checked out
Call number
Call number
581.6 T8733 1979
Collection
Local notes
Shelved in Aboriginal Collection
Description
Nancy Turner focuses on the plants that provided heat, shelter,transportation, clothing, clothing, nets, ropes, and containers -- thenecessities of life for First Peoples in B.C. and adjacent territories.She also shows how plant materials were effectively used in many otherways, such as for decoration and ornamentation, as scents, cleansingagents, and insect repellents, and for recreational activities. Over the millennia, the First Peoples have become highly skilled inthe arts of working with plant materials. Turner describes more than100 plants, their various uses and their importance in the materialcultures of First Nations. Each description has a colour photograph ofthe plant to aid in its identification.
Publication
Victoria, B.C. : British Columbia Provincial Museum, 1979.
User reviews
LibraryThing member BiblioFool
This excellent handbook provides the reader with a field guide to many plants native to British Columbia with an emphasis on their traditional technological uses by the First Peoples of the region. The book begins with a general discussion of the physical environment (climate, topography), the
The main body of the book consists of a series of detailed plant listings grouped in the following broad categories: algae; lichens; fungi; mosses; ferns; conifers; and two groups of flowering plants (monocotyledons and dicotyledons). Each plant listing includes a photograph, scientific and common names, a botanical description of the species, notes on habitat and distribution, as well as a detailed discussion of the aboriginal uses for the plant. Two appendices contain information on minor plants in aboriginal technology and the scientific names of plants and animals. The book also includes a detailed index, a glossary, and a comprehensive list of references.
In addition to the photographs of the plants, Turner has also selected some photographs of objects made from plant materials (e.g. baskets, nets, carrying bags), elders with handmade items, as well as a couple of historical photographs. This is a well-organized, clearly-written book containing a wealth of fascinating information for both the ethnobotanist and the interested layperson.
(Originally reviewed for the Canadian Book Review Annual.)
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First Peoples of the province, as well as the plant materials they gathered and used in the course of building houses and canoes, making containers, mats, nets, and clothing, and dressing wounds, making dyes, insect repellants and tanning agents. The introduction concludes with a description of harvesting and preparation methods as well as a quick discussion of how aboriginal groups traded various types of plant materials. The main body of the book consists of a series of detailed plant listings grouped in the following broad categories: algae; lichens; fungi; mosses; ferns; conifers; and two groups of flowering plants (monocotyledons and dicotyledons). Each plant listing includes a photograph, scientific and common names, a botanical description of the species, notes on habitat and distribution, as well as a detailed discussion of the aboriginal uses for the plant. Two appendices contain information on minor plants in aboriginal technology and the scientific names of plants and animals. The book also includes a detailed index, a glossary, and a comprehensive list of references.
In addition to the photographs of the plants, Turner has also selected some photographs of objects made from plant materials (e.g. baskets, nets, carrying bags), elders with handmade items, as well as a couple of historical photographs. This is a well-organized, clearly-written book containing a wealth of fascinating information for both the ethnobotanist and the interested layperson.
(Originally reviewed for the Canadian Book Review Annual.)
Show Less
ISBN
0771881177 / 9780771881176