Discovery Dance, Sac and Fox

George Catlin, Discovery Dance, Sac and Fox, 1835-1837, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.448
Copied George Catlin, Discovery Dance, Sac and Fox, 1835-1837, oil on canvas, 19 1⁄2 x 27 1⁄2 in. (49.5 x 69.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.448
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Discovery Dance, Sac and Fox
Artist
Date
1835-1837
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
19 1⁄2 x 27 1⁄2 in. (49.5 x 69.9 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure group — male
  • Ceremony — dance — Discovery Dance
  • Indian — Sauk and Fox
Object Number
1985.66.448
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.66.448

Artwork Description

“The Discovery Dance has been given here, amongst various others, and pleased the bystanders very much; it was exceedingly droll and picturesque, and acted out with a great deal of pantomimic effect---without music, or any other noise than the patting of their feet, which all came simultaneously on the ground, in perfect time, whilst they were dancing forward two or four at a time, in a skulking posture, overlooking the country, and professing to announce the approach of animals or enemies which they have discovered, by giving the signals back to the leader of the dance.” George Catlin first sketched this scene at a Sac and Fox village in 1835. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 2, no. 56, 1841; reprint 1973)