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Sioux Central Plains Painted Buffalo Hide Robe

Currency:USD Category:Art Start Price:30,000.00 USD Estimated At:120,000.00 - 160,000.00 USD
Sioux Central Plains Painted Buffalo Hide Robe
<B>Sioux Painted Buffalo Robe (Northern Teton, probably Hunkpapa or Blackfeet Sioux (<I>Siha Sapa</B></I>))</B></I><BR>Circa 1865<BR>Height 90 in. Length 109 in.<BR><BR>Across the Great Plains and throughout much of North America hide robes were the typical outer garment. They were worn with the thick animal hair lying against the skin, providing protection from the cold. Hides with the hair removed were worn in the warmer seasons. The Plains Indians wore their robes with the head of the animal to the wearer's left and the longer dimension wrapped around the body. Most robes, like the present example, retain the stake holes through which pegs were driven during the dressing process. The finely-grained skin of the tanned hide made a more than suitable canvas for artistic expression. A number of conventionalized designs became popular within the Plains Indian cultural milieu. Examples and their descriptive terms include box and border robes, border and hourglass robes, feathered circle robes, etc. However, the most dramatic painted robes are those depicting the war exploits of the owner. Recognition and status within the tribe were best achieved through prowess in battle. The pictographic robe was a reminder to all of the wearer's success on the war trail.<BR>The earliest documented example of a painted pictorial robe is one collected by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark from the Mandan and shipped to President Thomas Jefferson. William Clark's journal entry for April 3, 1805 states: "we are all ingaged packing up Sundery articles to be sent to the President of the U.S." The itemized list for "Box No. 2" includes "1 robe representing a battle between the Sioux and Ricara's, Minetarras and Mandans." This famous robe is in the collections of the Peabody Museum of Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.<BR>The present example falls squarely within the same tradition as the Lewis and Clark ro