Basket weaving

In former times baskets played a key role in the everyday life of rural families; they had a whole variety of functions. There were pointed baskets called “Zeinen” for the potato harvest or for carrying loaves of bread, for example, or rectangular washing baskets which were sometimes used as simple cradles. Animal fodder baskets were used for carrying hay. Baskets for use in the kitchen were daintier and usually round in shape. In the Farmhouse from Escholzmatt LU (741) our basket weaver can often be seen demonstrating how to weave simple baskets from willow rods.