About this piece
A navy folded textile with three red-bordered windows above a blue-gray labyrinth.
This baby carrier is Miao (Hmong), from Wudang Mountains, Guizhou Province, China, and dates to the 20th century. It is applique fine silk & cotton. The butterfly is an image important to the Miao creation myth, in which a butterfly born from a maple tree laid twelve eggs that hatched the creatures of the world, including people. The top flap is edged in red and white stripes around three teal squares. The lower panel is a big square of white-on-blue nested rectangles with stepped borders and small repeated forms. It is 21.2 inches wide and 28.2 long.
A maze for anyone with an hour to spare.
