#47 • Fred Machetanz "Story of the Beads" Print

Part of December 2024 Premier Auction (live auction by Alaska Premier Auctions & Appraisals)

High bid $425.00

Status: Sold

Category: Art: Alaskan Multiples

A signed and numbered 598/950 lithograph entitled "Story of the Beads" by Alaska artist Fred Machetanz (1908-2002). The piece depicts three youngsters listening to a story about trading beads, told by two great-grandmothers in Unalakleet, on the Bering Sea coast. Trading beads were used by the Alaska Natives in lieu of money, and certain ones were of immense value; it was said at one time that a single bead would purchase a umiak load of furs. These beads, of Asian origin, were traded with Alaska Natives years ago and have become valuable treasures of the past. Behind the group is a log cabin, built by villagers who learned to build with logs by the Laps who brought reindeer to Alaska at the turn of the last century, Unlike most villages, Unalakleet is near forests of spruce and birch which made building log cabins possible. Matted and framed, the artwork measures approximately 30" x 40.25" overall.