Square Hills, 1200 Miles above St. Louis

George Catlin, Square Hills, 1200 Miles above St. Louis, 1832, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.395
Copied George Catlin, Square Hills, 1200 Miles above St. Louis, 1832, oil on canvas, 11 1414 38 in. (28.536.6 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.395
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Artwork Details

Title
Square Hills, 1200 Miles above St. Louis
Date
1832
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
11 1414 38 in. (28.536.6 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — mountain — Square Hills
  • Western
  • Landscape — river
Object Number
1985.66.395

Artwork Description

“An hundred miles above [Belle Vue], I passed a curious feature, called the ‘Square Hills’ . . . On ascending them I found them to be two or three hundred feet high, and rising on their sides at an angle of 45 degrees; and on their tops, in some places, for half a mile in length, perfectly level, with a green turf, and corresponding exactly with the tabular hills spoken of above the Mandans.” (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 2, no. 32, 1841; reprint 1973)