George Catlin, O-rón-gás-see, Bear-catcher, a Celebrated Warrior, 1832, oil on canvas, 29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.26
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Artwork Details
- Title
- O‑rón-gás-see, Bear-catcher, a Celebrated Warrior
- Artist
- Date
- 1832
- 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 — Kansas
- Portrait male — Bear Catcher
- Object Number
- 1985.66.26
Artwork Description
George Catlin probably painted this image of Bear-catcher, a warrior of the Kansas/Kaw tribe, at Fort Leavenworth (in today’s Kansas) in 1832. Catlin later described the warrior as having “hair . . . cut as close to the head as possible, except a tuft the size of the palm of the hand, on the crown of the head, which is left of two inches in length: and in the centre of which is fastened a beautiful crest made of the hair of the deer's tail (dyed red) and horsehair, and oftentimes surmounted with the war-eagle's quill.” (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 2, no. 34, 1841; reprint 1973)
