When European explorers, missionaries and traders arrived in the Great Lakes area in the 17th century, Native Americans were using porcupine quills to decorate clothing, moccasins, and other objects.

These birch-bark boxes, decorated with dyed quills, are in the collections of the Michigan Historical Museum. They date to the 19th century. Some of the quills on the boxes have broken or been worn away.

To decorate a birch-bark box, the quill artist would follow these steps like these:

1. Obtain porcupine quills. Clean the quills, sort them according to their length, and trim an end. Dye the quills different colors or leave them natural. You might also moisten and flatten the quills with a tool or the back of your thumb nail.
2. Make a pattern for a box. Obtain birch bark. Cut pieces to make a box.
3. Create a design. Draw or etch the design onto the birch bark.
4. Poke holes for inserting the quills in the birch bark along the lines in the design.
5. Poke a quill up through one hole and down through a hole opposite it in the design. Pull it tight against the back of the bark. (A pliers or tweezers helps.) Bend the ends underneath the bark tightly against the bark. Fill in the design with quills in this way.
6. When the design is finished, cut another piece of birch bark or other material to cover the back of the design. Assemble the box.

When Europeans traded brightly colored glass beads to the Native Americans, many began using beads instead of quills for decoration. However, some Native American artists still work with quills today. You might see their handmade boxes for sale in museum stores, at craft fairs or at powwows.

Design a Birch-bark Box Cover

This black and white historical photograph shows a birch-bark box decorated with natural-colored porcupine quills. You can color a design like it and draw your own design on the activity pages [PDF]. The first page has the design shown here. The second page has an empty circle—draw your own design for a birch-bark box cover in it. Like the original quill artists, you might want to choose an image from nature, such as the the stars and flowers on the boxes on this page.

Updated 06/02/2004

Michigan Historical Center, Department of History, Arts and Libraries
Use and Reproduction Information [PDF]
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