Rush basket

This rush basket with a handle was made in 1993 by Cristina Calderón, the last member of the Yaghan people who lived in close contact with their customs. 

It corresponds to the type of plaiting known as Kéichi, characterized by its open weave. Traditionally, this type of basket was used to store the marine resources that had been collected.

Basketwork is closely associated with the Yaghan, the world’s southernmost indigenous people who, for at least 6,000 years, lived between the southern coast of the main Tierra del Fuego Island and Cape Horn.

They developed three types of plaiting of which the Kéichi is one. Of the others, the simplest is known as Stæpa or Stèpa Steapa, a compact weave used in baskets for collecting and storing wild fruit, while the Ulon Steapa is similar to the Stèpa but stronger and is also referred to as “round and round” plaiting by Yaghan weavers.