Ravenstail weaving

[2] The practice of Ravenstail and Chilkat weaving originated among the Tsimshian, and was retained by traditional Tlingit and Haida weavers in present-day Alaska.

[4] Typically, for Ravenstail pieces, it is created in modern times using black and white (and sometimes yellow) colored merino sheep-wool[5] (sometimes with the traditional slender strands of animal sinew or, a more modern substitute, small amounts of silk)[6] or, when legally available and affordable to the weaver, the original traditional fiber, yarn made from wild mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) wool,[7] to create bold geometric woven patterns.

[4] The early examples, ones made before first contact with foreign explorers and traders who introduced sheep's wool to the continent, were constructed from mountain goat-wool yarn.

[1] In 1987, Samuel published a book The Raven's Tail: Northern Geometric Style Weaving (University of British Columbia Press).

[9][11] In November 1990, a Ravenstail Weaver's Guild was formed in Ketchikan through the Totem Heritage Center, and served to strengthen craft community between Native and non-Natives in the United States and Canada.