Grand Vestibule: The British Monarchy and the World
The Grand Vestibule at Windsor Castle reflects interaction between the monarchy and the wider world
ABORIGINAL
Slippers
1920-27RCIN 63686
Pair of Aboriginal child's slippers, bordered with velvet and decorated with shells and sand.
The shellwork tradition in Australia began as an Aboriginal female handicraft which was adapted and tailored for the tourist market by the late nineteenth century. As early as the 1880s, indigenous women were recorded selling shell baskets and other souvenirs at Circular Quay and Botany Bay in the Sydney area. They were encouraged by European missionaries, who sought markets for them inland and overseas. Today, shellwork crafts remain popular among international visitors, but they are also increasingly in demand in museums and galleries where they are considered high art.
The shellwork tradition in Australia began as an Aboriginal female handicraft which was adapted and tailored for the tourist market by the late nineteenth century. As early as the 1880s, indigenous women were recorded selling shell baskets and other souvenirs at Circular Quay and Botany Bay in the Sydney area. They were encouraged by European missionaries, who sought markets for them inland and overseas. Today, shellwork crafts remain popular among international visitors, but they are also increasingly in demand in museums and galleries where they are considered high art.
