Tóh-to-wah-kón-da-pee, Blue Medicine, a Medicine Man of the Ting-ta-to-ah Band

George Catlin, Tóh-to-wah-kón-da-pee, Blue Medicine, a Medicine Man of the Ting-ta-to-ah Band, 1835, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.73
Copied George Catlin, Tóh-to-wah-kón-da-pee, Blue Medicine, a Medicine Man of the Ting-ta-to-ah Band, 1835, oil on canvas, 29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.73
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Artwork Details

Title
Tóh-to-wah-kón-da-pee, Blue Medicine, a Medicine Man of the Ting-ta-to-ah Band
Artist
Date
1835
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Indian — Dakota
  • Indian — Sioux
  • Portrait male — Blue Medicine
Object Number
1985.66.73
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.66.73

Artwork Description

George Catlin described Blue Medicine, a member of the Eastern Sioux/Dakota tribe, as a noted doctor or medicine man, “with his medicine or mystery drum and rattle in his hands, his looking-glass on his breast, his rattle of antelope's hoofs, and drum of deer-skins.” The artist painted this portrait in 1835 at Fort Snelling, a military post in today’s Minnesota. (Catlin, 1848 Catalogue, Catlin’s Indian Gallery, SAAM online exhibition)