The painted stars and beaded birds on this pipe bag suggest it may have been associated with the Ghost Dance religion, which began in 1889 when a northern Paiute holy man named Wovoka experienced a revelation. The new religion spread rapidly among Plains Indians, and by 1890, Ghost Dance ceremonies were practiced by the Lakota, Cheyenne, Comanche, Shoshone, Assiniboine, Arapaho, and other tribes.

Infinity of Nations: Art and History in the Collections of the National Museum of the American Indian
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The National Museum of the American Indian  |  George Gustav Heye Center  |  New York, NY

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