MS 39-d-1 Book of drawings by unidentified Lakota artists
odd: label: Local Numbers
content: NAA MS 39D-1
place: label: Place
content: North America
culture: label: Culture
content: Lakota (Teton/Western Sioux)
setName: label: See more items in
content: MS 39-d-1 Book of drawings by unidentified Lakota artists
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 1 Volume (disbound; 84 drawings on 55 leaves and 1 letter and 1 note, graphite and colored pencil on ledger pages, 10.25 x 8.25 inches)
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1876
custodhist: label: Custodial History
content: The provenance of the drawings is obscure.  A letter in the Bureau of Ethnology records from William Henry Holmes (Chief, Bureau of American Ethnology) to James Mooney (Ethnologist, Bureau of American Ethnology) dated March 28, 1906 indicates that the drawings had been recently acquired from "Mrs. Cushing," presumably Emily Magill Cushing, widow of Frank Hamilton Cushing.  No further information about the origin of the drawings or the circumstances of their donation to the BAE has been found.  The drawings were forwarded to Mooney for identification and comment.  Mooney replied in a letter dated April 9, 1906, identifying the drawings as "Western Sioux, of date about 30 years ago."  This letter is in the collection.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NAA.MS39D1
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Volumes
label: Type
content: Works of art
label: Type
content: Drawings
label: Type
content: Ledger drawings
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Works of art
label: Genre/Form
content: Drawings
label: Genre/Form
content: Ledger drawings
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The collection consists of eighty-four (84) drawings of scenes of warfare, horse raids, courting, and ceremonies on pages of a ledger book, now disbound and laminated.  The covers have not been retained. Several pages bear storekeeper's accounts of agricultural implements issued, in the names of several Lakota. Dates on these sheets range from 1873 to July 1876. On one sheet the words "Pine Ridge, D. T." are written in pencil, now faded, followed by other writing in the Dakota language (11001600b). One phrase on this sheet ("miye heraka kin") seems to identify one artist as The Male Elk. Page 47 bears the words "waluta tokala ala eciyapiye" ("red root fox they call him"). The drawings appear to be by multiple artists, probably Teton Lakota.

The names given in store keeper's ledger are: The Black Hawk, Bear Eagle, Bone Necklace Son, Charger, Dog Eagle, The Fats Son, Frozen Foot, Good Thunder, The Half, Handle, The Hawk, Iron Horse, Tom La Barge, Alex Laravi, Lewis Martin,  Meshel, The One That Hurts Himself, The Painted Arm, The Pole, The Rattler, Speach Maker, Spotted Horse, Standing Bear, Straight Head, Two Tails, Whirlwind, and White Stone.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.