Native American Umbilical Fetish – Northern Plains Turtle Amulet

The umbilical amulet, or umbilical fetish, is a traditional object of the American Indians.
This example is a stylized turtle superbly decorated with beads, intended for a newborn female. Made of leather (very often deer), the entire back is beaded with Venetian beads traded in yellow, white, red and black. On the edges are fringes of dyed horsehair and metal cones made from parts of cans. Very early 20th century, by the Indians of the Northern Plains.
Total length: 23 cm (with fringes).
From an old French collection.

The American Indians, captives of the reservations, sold or bartered their crafts to European travelers. The custom of the umbilical amulet, very developed in the tribes of the Plains, the Plateau and the Forests, consisted of keeping the umbilical cord which had become an "amulet"; dried and then wrapped in sage or grass, it is kept in a small deer skin case, very often decorated with beads. This amulet was attached to the cradle of the newborn, ensuring protection until adulthood, and was generally buried with its owner at the time of his death. ___________________________________________
Bibliography: Taylor Colin F. (1997) - Indian Traditions, the Daily Life of American Indians. At Nathan, 128 pages.