“L” is for lowcountry baskets

“L” is for lowcountry baskets. Far as long as people of African descent have lived in South Carolina, they have made baskets. Like the grasslands and marshes of western and central Africa, coastal wetlands provide grasses and plant fiber appropriate for making coiled baskets. The early history of lowcountry coiled grass baskets parallels the rise of rice cultivation. After the Civil War men continued to make agricultural baskets while women made household forms such as sewing and storage baskets. The shift from “work baskets” to “show baskets” also meant a change in material from bullrush to sweetgrass and from saw palmetto to cabbage palm. As symbols of a distinct African American culture, lowcountry baskets have much significance and meaning. Yet, lowcountry baskets remain what they have always been: coiled grass vessels that are useful for countless purposes.