Eeh-nís-kim, Crystal Stone, Wife of the Chief

George Catlin, Eeh-nís-kim, Crystal Stone, Wife of the Chief, 1832, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.150
Copied George Catlin, Eeh-nís-kim, Crystal Stone, Wife of the Chief, 1832, oil on canvas, 2924 in. (73.760.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.150
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Artwork Details

Title
Eeh-nís-kim, Crystal Stone, Wife of the Chief
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
  • Dress — Indian dress
  • Indian — Blackfoot
  • Portrait female — Crystal Stone
  • Portrait female — Crystal Stone — bust
Object Number
1985.66.150

Artwork Description

“I have also placed upon my canvas [Crystal Stone]; her countenance is rather pleasing, which is an uncommon thing amongst the Blackfeet---her dress is made of skins, and being the youngest of a bevy of six or eight, and the last one taken under his [the chief's] guardianship, was smiled upon with great satisfaction.” Crystal Stone was the youngest wife of the Blackfoot chief Buffalo Bull’s Back Fat, the “apple of his eye” and “exempted . . . from the drudgeries of the camp.” George Catlin painted this work at Fort Union in the upper Midwest in 1832. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 5, 1841; reprint 1973)