Dat So La Lee

Dat So La Lee (c. 1829–1925) was a Washoe basket weaver whose finely coiled baskets became celebrated works of Native American art. Her baskets are known for intricate designs and forms, including bottles, bowls, and trays.

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Washoe people: An Indigenous people whose ancestral homeland lies in the Great Basin around Lake Tahoe. Dat So La Lee’s identity and basketry belong to Washoe cultural traditions.
Louisa Keyser: A Washoe basket weaver whose work was marketed under the name Dat So La Lee. The name identifies Keyser, while accounts of the celebrated weaver’s life have sometimes confused her with other people.
Washoe degikup: A tall, rounded Washoe basket form with a narrow opening and a flared rim. Degikups became among the most admired forms associated with Dat So La Lee.
Native American basketry: Indigenous basket-making traditions of North America, varied by community, material, and technique. Her baskets became widely recognized examples within this broader artistic heritage.
Coiled basketry: A basket-making technique that builds a vessel by stitching successive coils of material together. Her baskets were made using the coiling method.
Abraham Nathaniel Rabe: A Nevada businessman and collector who promoted and sold Washoe baskets made by Louisa Keyser. Rabe helped present Keyser’s baskets to collectors and the public.
Washoe burden basket: A large, sturdy Washoe basket traditionally used to carry gathered materials. This functional form shows the practical lineage behind later collectible baskets.
Cultural appropriation: The adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of another, often amid unequal power relations. Her marketed identity invites scrutiny of how outsiders framed Indigenous artists and their work.
Sedge: Grasslike plants in the family Cyperaceae, many of which grow in wetlands. Sedge was among the plant materials Washoe weavers used in basketry.
Amy Cohn: An art historian and curator who researched Native American basketry and the history of Dat So La Lee. Cohn’s scholarship examined how Keyser’s identity and reputation were constructed.