This pane of 10 stamps offers a sampling of the diverse ways in which American Indians, in the context of their everyday lives, created utilitarian, social, spiritual, or commercial objects that were also extraordinary expressions of beauty. Executed in a variety of media, these artifacts-which date from around the 11th century A.D. to circa 1969-illustrate the talent, ingenuity, and diversity of America's first peoples, who raised practical necessity to the status of fine art. The issuance coincided with the opening in 2004 of the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, DC.