An Ojibwe bag, also known as bandolier bag, is a decorated shoulder bag made by the Ojibwe women. It is a cultural icon among the Ojibwe, people currently living in southern Canada and northern Midwestern United States. The bag contains sacred items and personal objects, often symbolical. It used to be a valuable form of exchange and an emblem of tribal identity and leadership. Also called “medicine bag”, even though its use is symbolical rather than medical, it is often related to the religious life of the Ojibwe.

This item therefore is an example of coexistence of ritual significance and caregiving in human societies.

Artist: Jennifer Martin

An archaeologist holding up an Ojibwe bad and thinking about someone using it

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Credit: Jennifer Martin and Open Past

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