Southern Plains — Cradleboards: Carriers of Culture Part IV
Explore how cradleboards across Native nations reflect care, craftsmanship, and cultural traditions from tribe to tribe
[Teepee in Native American Camp] (1880s–90s) by UnknownThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Cradleboards of the Southern Plains
This region stretches across parts of present-day Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, eastern New Mexico, and southern Colorado in the United States. Here, cradleboards reflect the lives of nations shaped by movement, ceremony, and deep ties to the land.
Bull Chief, Chester, & Shorty (1905) by Edward S. CurtisThe J. Paul Getty Museum
Strength, symbolism, and movement
Crafted for travel by foot or horseback, each cradleboard blends strength with symbolism, and tradition with innovation.
COMANCHE (NɄMɄNɄɄ)
Cradle in Comanche language: kõhn
The Comanche call themselves Nʉmʉnʉʉ (NUH-MUH-NUH), meaning “The People.” Once part of the Shoshone, they broke away in the late 1600s and migrated onto the southern Plains. Known as the “Lords of the Plains,” they gained a fierce reputation for their horsemanship, skill in warfare, and command of vast territories across what is now Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
Comanche CradleboardRed Earth
Early Comanche cradleboard designs
Cradleboards made by members of the Comanche tribe were reinforced with a protective rawhide lining. Prior to the 1880s they were simply adorned with painted pouches and designs composed of brass tacks on the upper portion of the boards.
Blessings for a good life
When a Comanche baby is placed in a completed cradle, both the cradle and baby are blessed with accompanying prayers by a Native doctor, grandfather or male elder to ensure a good life. Each family may have their own traditions.
KIOWA
The Kiowa of are credited with creating the most well-known baby carrier of the plains, commonly known as the lattice cradle. This style was so popular that it spread to the Comanche, Cheyenne and Dakota Sioux tribes of the central plains.
The Kiowa cradleboard utilized a V-shaped framework to which was attached a deep, straight-sided skin bag. The pointed ends of the two vertical boards usually extended more than a foot beyond the top of the bag.
Kiowa CradleboardRed Earth
Built for strength and safety
The boards were held in place by wooden cross pieces near the head and foot of the pouch. These boards, and the curved piece of buffalo rawhide secured inside the top of the cradle, protected the child if the cradle fell to the ground.
Beaded ties and playful touches
Several thong ties, usually completely beaded with designs including oak, maple and sumac leaves in dark blue and red (oxblood) beads, closed the pouch. Small toys such as navel amulets, thimbles, bead chains and bells were sewn onto the outside to amuse the baby.
Kiowa CradleboardRed Earth
A shared art of Kiowa families
In Kiowa tradition, the creation of lattice cradleboards is considered a woman's art. While women created the intricate beaded covers, the men were known to make the frames.
A gift of love and protection
Each cradle was constructed and given to a new mother to celebrate the birth of her child and as a prayer for the baby's health and happiness.
Kiowa: “two halves different”
The Kiowa name can be derived from the Comanche tribal name of the Kiowas, Ka-i-gwu, meaning "two halves different." This referred to the warrior's head, where one side the hair was cut and on the other side the hair was left long and uncut.
From that name came what some consider the modern meaning: "Principle People." Kiowa people refer to themselves as 'Tepda, "coming out" and Ksu'da, "pulling out," probably recalling their origin stories.
Kiowa rise as horse-mounted hunters
After they were introduced to horses by the Spaniards and mastered the art of horseback riding in the 18th century, the Kiowa moved onto the Plains to hunt bison where they made alliances with the Plains-Apache and their former enemies, the Comanche.
The Kiowas are one of the only tribes to have a written history, kept in the form of a pictographic calendar painted on bison skin and updated in the winter and summer. From 1832 through 1892, this intricate calendar was produced annually by the tribe.
Kiowa CradleboardRed Earth
Cradle in Kiowa language: pähn-tope
LAKOTA (TETON SIOUX)
A Lakota cradle consists of three parts: the main piece that forms the sides and top, the tab at the top, and the back of the cradle. When the cradle is being used, it can stand vertically due to the weight of the baby's head.
Lakota cradles rarely have a framework of boards to which they are attached. Instead, the complete cradle is constructed of buckskin.
Cradles of care, culture, and status
Lakota cradleboards served many purposes. They served as child care tools, kept babies warm and safe, were used as art and cultural objects identifying the maker and user as Lakota, as gifts to strengthen the relationship between one woman and another, and as status symbols.
The father's sister was expected to make his first born a completely quilled (and later beaded) cradleboard.
Feared warriors of the Plains
The Lakota were masters of the North American plains and prairies and were feared by other tribes from the Great Lakes to the Rockies. The Lakota are often refered to as Sioux, the name is from the Ojibwe word "nadowes-sioux" meaning "snake" or "enemy."
Lakota Sioux Cradleboard Cover (1885) by UnknownRed Earth
Migration driven by conflict
They migrated to the upper plains states from the headwaters of the Mississippi in the 16th century because of wars with the Cree.
Bird's Eye View of Sioux Camp at Pine Ridge, South Dakota (11/28/1890) by Series: Photographs of American Military Activities, ca. 1918 - ca. 1981Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery
The longest and bloodiest frontier war
Cradle in Lakota language: čhuwič inpa
OSAGE
In the Osage tradition, an aunt from the father's family presents a cradleboard to a newborn child, receiving in return both prayers and gifts. The cradleboard is usually made of cedar, poplar or birch.
Osage CradleboardRed Earth
Symmetry in carved designs
The upper third of the cradleboard is about three feet long and decorated with carved and painted geometric panels, with one half of the design a reflection of the other half.
Brass tacks and carved details
Many times, the panel is outlined with brass tacks and rests on a row of pierced holes that are flat at the base and rounded at the top.
Decorated to comfort and entertain
The face guard is made of bent wood that is attached directly below the row of holes. It is draped with downy feathers, thimbles, beaded strips, or tassels to create interesting objects for the baby to look at.
Osage Cradleboard Osage Cradleboard (1910) by UnknownRed Earth
Final touches of safety and warmth
Bells are fastened to the bar to keep away evil spirits. To complete the cradleboard, a cushion the length of the child's body and necessary wrappings and covers are added for comfort.
A distinct form defines the Osage cradleboard style
The Osage cradleboard is different from neighboring tribes since it has no hood, lacings or footrest, and the board is a plain rectangle.
Osage CradleboardRed Earth
In 1804 the Osage were met by Lewis and Clark during their Corps of Discovery Expedition. At that time Lewis and Clark estimated the Osage population at 6,500. Between 1808 and 1825, under increasing pressure from the U.S. government and settlers, the Osage signed a series of treaties that ceded most of their land in Missouri and Arkansas. In 1870, they were relocated to a reservation in Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma).
Osage CradleboardRed Earth
Cradle in Osage language: u-thu-pshe
The name Osage comes from "wazaze", which was translated into English from "Wazhazhe" their name for themselves.
As horses carried families across the Plains, cradleboards remained a source of safety and identity. But farther south and west, new forms emerged, woven cradles shaped from willow and bark, framed in ceremony, and passed down through generations. In Part V, we journey into the Southwest to witness the enduring artistry of those traditions.
Continue exploring: Part V — Cradleboards of the Southwest
Red Earth Cradleboards
Special thanks to Dr. Harry "Doc" and Dorothy Swan Deupree for their contribution of the Deupree Cradleboard Collection to the Red Earth Museum.
Photography by
Danny Sands
John Jernigan
Research by
John Elder
Lori Gonzalez
Scott Tigert
Chelsey Curry
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