Ha-na-tá-nu-maúk, Wolf Chief, Head Chief of the Tribe

George Catlin, Ha-na-tá-nu-maúk, Wolf Chief, Head Chief of the Tribe, 1832, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.127
Copied George Catlin, Ha-na-tá-nu-maúk, Wolf Chief, Head Chief of the Tribe, 1832, oil on canvas, 2924 in. (73.760.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.127
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Artwork Details

Title
Ha-na-tá-nu-maúk, Wolf Chief, Head Chief of the Tribe
Date
1832
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
2924 in. (73.760.9 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Indian — Mandan
  • Portrait male — Wolf Chief
Object Number
1985.66.127

Artwork Description

“This man is head-chief of the [Mandan] nation, and familiarly known by the name of ‘Chef de Loup’ as the French Traders call him; a haughty, austere, and overbearing man, respected and feared by his people rather than loved. The tenure by which this man holds his office, is that by which head-chiefs of most of the tribes claim, that of inheritance . . . The dress of this chief was one of great extravagance, and some beauty; manufactured of skins, and a great number of quills of the raven, forming his stylish head-dress.” George Catlin painted Ha-na-tá-nu-maúk at a Mandan village in 1832. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 13, 1841; reprint 1973)