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A Fine Cheyenne Gunstock War Club c. 1860

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:25.00 USD Estimated At:6,000.00 - 12,000.00 USD
A Fine Cheyenne Gunstock War Club c. 1860
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This is an outstanding gunstock war club dating to the 19th Century from the Indian Wars era and is attributed to the Cheyenne Native American Indians of Wyoming. The war club tomahawk which dates to circa 1860 is from the Arnold Marcus Chernoff well-known and respected collection (many of Chernoff’s items are from the Chicago Historical Society in 1974). The piece features a hand cut wood gunstock haft with old brass trade tacked designs on both sides and a forged, notch-cut Revolutionary War (1775-1783) Colonial American Spontoon style notched blade inset with a wetted and hardened hide gasket. The wood gunstock haft shows a pierced hole at the bottom end that likely held a drop of feathers or beads at one time and is accented by the triangular grip stop adorned with brass trade tacks. The entire war club shows a nice, deep and even chocolate patina with nice handling wear from much age and use. The war club is in a nice full size with presentation size wide notch-cut blade and is one of the finest gunstock war clubs currently offered for sale on the public market. Provenance: From the Arnold Marcus Chernoff esteemed collection. Chernoff sold the piece to collector and author Mark Francis at Chernoff’s Chicago home in 1984. The piece is features in the 2019 book, “Rare American Indian Weapons Volume 2”. Many of Chernoff’s items were purchased from the Chicago Historical Society’s deacquisition museum sale in 1974. The Arnold Marcus Chernoff collection is one of the most esteemed in the American Indian collecting world which has included such public items as the Buffalo Bill Cody 1849 Colt that sold at Susanin’s sale for $42,000, the Confederate 7-Star Flag for $17,500 at Heritage Auctions, and some upcoming items such as the Apsaalooke Crow Beaded Rifle Scabbard valued at $25,000 from Cowan’s Auction and the Colt Engraved Set valued at $75,000 in Morphy Auctions. The war club measures 30 ½ inches in length with a 6 ½ inch long by 3 inch wide blade. Provenance: 2019 book “Rare American Indian Weapons Volume 2” Arnold Markus Chernoff, IL (1974-1984) Mark Francis, OH (1984-)