We have all noticed the small to medium sized baskets that are very prevalent in many picnic sites. These are called wicker baskets and they are mostly hand-woven out of a variety of strings such as bamboo, wheat and other reeds and rashes that are mostly grass in nature. There are also wicker baskets woven expertly out of twigs. It is hard to determined exactly where wicker baskets originated from but most historians are in agreement that they first appeared in Africa and the Middle East although cultures such other as the Chinese and the Mayans in the South American region of the world also hand-woven baskets of some sort. Perhaps one of the most famous stories in history involving the wicker basket is the biblical story of Moses who was placed in a basket which was then floated downstream later to be found and adapted by Pharaoh's household. Today, Africa and the Middle East still produce quality hand-woven wicker baskets but the West has also caught up and began producing them mostly in Mexico. So what are wicker baskets used for?