Shón-ka-ki-he-ga, Horse Chief, Grand Pawnee Head Chief

George Catlin, Shón-ka-ki-he-ga, Horse Chief, Grand Pawnee Head Chief, 1832, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.99
Copied George Catlin, Shón-ka-ki-he-ga, Horse Chief, Grand Pawnee Head Chief, 1832, oil on canvas, 2924 in. (73.760.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.99
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Artwork Details

Title
Shón-ka-ki-he-ga, Horse Chief, Grand Pawnee Head 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 — accessory — jewelry
  • Indian — Pawnee
  • Portrait male — Horse Chief — bust
  • Object — weapon — axe
Object Number
1985.66.99

Artwork Description

“I have visited forty-eight different tribes, the greater part of which I found speaking different languages, and containing in all 400,000 souls. I have brought home safe, and in good order, 310 portraits in oil, all painted in their native dress, and in their own wigwams . . . as well as a very extensive and curious collection of their costumes, and all their other manufactures, from the size of a wigwam down to the size of a quill or a rattle.” (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 1, 1841; reprint 1973)