89
Historic Cheyenne Horned Figure Painted War Shield
Currency:USD
Category:Collectibles
Start Price:2,500.00 USD
Estimated At:25,000.00 - 35,000.00 USD
CURRENT BID
0.00USD+ applicable fees & taxes.
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Live Online Auction Starts In
2025 Jun 22 @ 09:00 (UTC-06:00 : CST/MDT)
This is an absolutely stunning and historic circa 1870 Cheyenne horned figure pictorial war shield from the ex-Forrest Fenn collection. The shield exhibits a shadowy black horned figure amongst a spotted background, these horned figures have been documented as representing beings in Native American mystical history, most notably the Thunder Being and the Tree Dwelling Demons. The shield exhibits a thick, buffalo shoulder hump shield and has a slight concave shape to it. Further the piece has old, faded colors showing the horned being in black with a red background and blue circles and light, faded yellow streaks as well. The black figure representing the horned Thunder Being, the blue circles the hail and rain and the yellow streaks representing the lighting streaks. There is a large, fringe cut arm and shoulder strap attached to the piece all Indian tanned hides. The back of the shield and inside of strap have a nice patina from honest age and use. The front also shows nice honest patina with lightly faded paints.
This horned humanoid figure has been documented in Plains and Eastern Plains history including being noted as: The Heyoka is a trickster in the Lakota mythology and is a spirit of thunder and lightning; Wakinyan in Lakota Sioux as the Thunder Being, Thunder Spirit or Thunder Bird as well, see the ledger drawing of the dream of Wakinyan by Black Hawk a Sans Arc Lakota Sioux draw circa 1880 in the photo gallery); Malevolent Little Tree Dweller demons from the Western Woodlands or Easter Plains Santee Sioux circa 1880; also sometimes referred to as the “canotila” or "canoti" in the Plains; The Midi Horned Fig by the Chippewa; see "The Tree Dweller Cults of the Dakota" (1955) by James H. Howard published by the American Folklore Society.
Provenance: From the ex-estate of famed collector Forrest Fenn who was noted as collecting the piece from the Cheyenne in the 1970’s and later sold the shield to a private California collection in the 1990’s. The shield measures 19-inches across.
Examples in the photo gallery include the image of a tree dweller painted on a Comanche war shield circa 1870-80; an image of a tree dweller painted on Cheyenne drum circa 1870-80 in "Art of the American Indian Frontier" by David Penny (1992); another Cheyenne war shield in the Peabody Museum collection; and in "Pleasing The Spirits" by David W. Penney (1982) where two tree dweller dolls are shown that are attributed to the Yanktonai Sioux; the hand drum attributed to Siyosapa (Hunkpapa/Yanktonai), Collected at Fort Peck, Montana in 1885 from the Detroit Institute of Arts from Richard Pohrt with the same horned figure face and neck with radiating yellow lightning symbols and noted in “Siyosapa: At the Edge of Art” by David W. Penney National Museum of the American Indian, as resembling and attributed to the Thunder Beings (picture shown for example in the photo gallery, total of 8).
Auction Location:
34156 E Frontage Rd, Bozeman, Montana, 59715, United States
Previewing Details:
Preview the Friday before the auction 10am to 5pm or by appointment.
No sales tax in Montana
Buyer's Premiums:
| From (Incl.) | To (Excl.) | Premium |
| 0.00 |
Infinite |
28% |
Additional Fees:
Shipping Details:
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