Nantucket lightship baskets are a type of basket originating, in the 19th century on lightships on Nantucket Island. Lightship baskets are all made from rattan and wood, have an odd number of staves, a solid wooden base, a nailed and lashed rim, a rattan weaver, and are woven over a mold. Oak, pine, and ash are the most traditional type of wood used on baskets, but today many other types are used, such as cherry and ebony. Often modern lightship baskets incorporate multiple types of wood.
History
Origin Baskets began being made on Nantucket Island by Native Americans of the Wampanoag Nation; these were generally of the splint type, and bear little resemblance to Nantucket lightship baskets. Nevertheless, these early baskets may have inspired later basket makers on Nantucket and aboard the lightships. The earliest form of basket made by white settlers on Nantucket, originated on whaleships in the early 1800s. These baskets were made free form (without a mold) and are thus only vaguely similar to later lightship baskets. These baskets, however, do begin to show early principles of lightship basket design, often incorporating a solid wooden base and a rattan weaver. The inspiration is thought to be based upon barrel manufacture due to the similar nature of a solid base and wooden staves. The use of rattan in basket making is most likely due to whalers picking up the material while sailing in the South Pacific. The first true lightship baskets were made in the mid- to late 1800s aboard the lightship stationed on the Nantucket Shoals. The first lightship station on the Nantucket Island Shoal was established in June 1854 and crewed by six men. Deployments aboard the lightship often lasted for 30 days and the crewmembers generally had little to do. The earliest lightship baskets begin appearing in the 1860s and are generally of more utilitarian form. The first purse style basket with a lid was made by Lightship Captain Charles Ray (1798–1884), and is relatively similar to the type sold today. Lightship basket bases, rims, and staves tended to be made on-island, with lightship crewmembers bringing these items on board the ship to do the actual weaving, and help pass the time. The molds were originally made from old cut-up ships' masts. According to the Nantucket Lightship Basket Museum, some of these early lightship basket makers included: "Captain Davis Hall, Captain Andrew Sandsbury, Roland Folger, Thomas W. Barrallay, William D. Appleton, George W. Ray, Charles F. Ray, Joe Fisher, Charlie Sylvia, SB Raymond and Isaac Hamblin." Lightship baskets stopped being made on board the Nantucket lightships in 1900, when the government stopped allowing crewmembers to spend time doing so. The process continued on Nantucket Island. José Formoso Reyes began making the first true lightship basket purses in the 1940s, calling them "Friendship Baskets" after learning the craft from Captain Charles Ray's grandson Mitchel Ray. Charlie Sayles, Sr. is credited with creating the original Ivory Whale adornment for a basket top in the 1940s, a practice that is ubiquitous today.
Use Nantucket lightship baskets were originally designed as multi-purpose baskets to carry and store shopping, vegetables, and stray items about the home. Crewmen aboard the Nantucket lightships made most for sweethearts and spouses on Nantucket, or for sale. Baskets could generally be purchased between $1.50 for small basket up to $50.00 for larger or more elaborate pieces. Most baskets were sold to Islanders, although a tourist trade quickly developed. Lightship baskets began being used as purses in the 1900s and still are today. True Nantucket lightship baskets currently start at about $500 and can cost up to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Poorly made knock-offs, however, can be had for far less. After José Reyes invented the "Friendship Basket" lightship basket purses began being given as gifts, as signs of long-term friendship. After the development of the "Friendship Basket" it began to be common for girls to receive a lightship basket purse as a gift after graduating from Nantucket High School.
Types
Round basket Round baskets are the most common form of lightship basket made, and the easiest to manufacture. The very first lightship baskets made were of this variety. Round baskets often have the greatest range of sizes, but are most often seen without a lid.
Oval basket Oval baskets began appearing soon after the round baskets and are only marginally more difficult to make. Oval baskets are the shape generally used for "Friendship Basket" purses, often incorporating a lid. The size and shape of the oval can vary, but traditional "Friendship baskets" are always eight inches.
Square basket Square baskets are the most difficult form (speaking only of shape) to make. Due to this fact they tend to be less common than round or oval baskets, but are still seen relatively frequently. Square baskets generally do not have a lid, but varieties with lids are known to exist.
Nesting baskets Nesting baskets are a series of lightship baskets made of diminishing size designed to fit neatly inside one another. Nesting baskets began being made early on aboard the Nantucket lightships. The smallest baskets can be the size of a thimble with only a half-inch diameter to multiple feet in diameter. In nesting basket sets though it is more common to see a range between a two-inch diameter basket and a fourteen-inch diameter.
Miniature baskets Miniature baskets are a more recent development, as they often require advanced tools to manufacture. Miniature baskets can take any form (round and oval though are the most common, in that order) but must have a diameter less than two inches to be distinguished simply from a small basket. Astronaut Daniel W. Bursch wove a set of miniature nesting baskets while at the International Space Station. Miniature baskets are often put on thin chains and worn as necklaces by women.
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