oil painting
- Museum number
- Am2006,Ptg.39
- Title
- Object: Portfolio of pipes
- Description
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Painting; Eehk-tohk-pa-she-pee-shaw, (Black Mocasin), chief of the Minatarrees, upper missouri; sitting, wrapped in skin robe and holding a long decorated pipe in front of a small fire. Next to him is a man, woman and child; on the post at the rear, hangs a buffalo robe, bonnet, shield and a pouch with bow and arrows. plate 20.
Oil on cardboard
- Production date
- 1800
- Dimensions
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Height: 46.50 centimetres (bound portfolio)
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Height: 44.30 centimetres
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Width: 63.40 centimetres (bound portfolio)
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Width: 57.80 centimetres
- $Inscriptions
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- Curator's comments
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Hand written text, front of portfolio.
A selection of Indian pipes in “Catlin’s North American Indian Collection”: with drawings made and coloured from the originals, by his own hand.
The males amongst the North American Indians all smoke, using instead of tobacco, several narcotics, such as inner bark of Red Willow, sumach leaves & c. which they call “k’nick-k’neck”, when it is prepared for smoking; to which, when they can get it, they add a small portion of tobacco.
Each man manufactures his own pipe, the bowl of which is generally carved in spar, in marble, stealite or potstone, found in their countries.
Pipes amongst the Am Indians are not only matters of luxury in the hands of all private individuals, where they are always emblems of peace and tendered as friendly salutations; but are kept in all tribes by the chiefs, as instruments for solemnizing Treaties; in which case they are public property considered sacred, and denominated “Calumets”, (or pipe of peace).
The Barrow pipes of Am which are exceedingly rude show that smoking amongst the North Am Indians has been a very ancient custom: and the pipes of their recent sculpture seen in the following drawings, show distinctly their progress of manufacture.
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Twenty-three paintings, each with a page of description, are bound in a full red leather portfolio which is decorated in gold and black.
- Location
- Not on display
- Condition
- good
- Acquisition date
- 1882
- Acquisition notes
- Purchased by the Trustees of the Christy Collection
- Department
- Africa, Oceania and the Americas
- Registration number
- Am2006,Ptg.39