Small purses by Martha Berry

The featured purse at right is "In This Place."

The purse took First Place in Beadwork/Quillwork at the Chickasaw Nation Artesian Festival in May 2017.

If you ask Cherokees how many directions there are, they will tell you there are seven.

Those directions are East, North, West, South, Above, Below, and In This Place.

We think of our place not on a flat compass rose but as the core of a sphere. It is a three dimensional concept, difficult to shrink down to a flat, two dimensions to put on a printed page.

The design on this purse is a symbol for the four winds, also for the sun.

The purse took 82 hours to complete in Spring 2017.

For more details about "In This Place" or for more information about any of my small purses created through the years, please click on the thumbnail photos below.

-- Martha Berry