7C953372-1DD8-B71B-0B82EA562C8478BA

Brass Thimble (FOUS 573)

Brass thimble.

Although Euro-American women typically used brass thimbles like this one to protect their fingertips while sewing, American Indians acquired them for another, unrelated purpose, as a decorative element for clothing. The hole punctured in the top of this thimble suggest it could have been tied to a shirt or dress with sinew string. Called a tinkler, this thimble would have replaced the animal claws or small hooves that tribes traditionally attached to garments to produce a tinkling sound when they jostled together as people walked or danced.

U.S. National Park Service

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Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site, Code: FOUS

Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site

NPS.gov Collection

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Monday, January 1, 2018 6:04:04 AM

Monday, January 1, 2018 6:04:04 AM

7C954022-1DD8-B71B-0BC0A4F77390F333.jpg

Canon Canon, Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi

1/50 sec at f / 5.6

87 mm

ISO 1600

Friday, January 13, 2017 10:05:20 PM

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363.3 kB

Scenic