American Plains Cree Indian beaded vest. Front of vest is black velveteen with elaborate hand stitched overlay bead work in flower/tree pattern sewn with green, blue, red, pink, orange and silver glass beads with five floral design metal buttons. Front left of vest has two stitched pockets, with only one being open. Vest also has five metal buttons with a floral design. 20 3/4″ Length x 20″ Width. Early 20th century. Provenance – Chester Myron Spidell & Ethel Marion Spidell settled in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1918 and homesteaded on 160 acres with their four children. Chester used his carpentry skills to build a log cabin for his family, and other structures in the area including a one-room schoolhouse, several barns and a bridge. He and his family left the area in 1924 and moved to California. During the time Chester lived in Meadow Lake, he received this beaded vest as a gift from a Cree Indian.