eric
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Post by eric on Mar 10, 2022 9:11:01 GMT -5
According to Wissler the Wiciska was brought by Man Afraid from a northern tribe. Most likely the Crow since 2 of the lances are shown in several ledger drawings as being side by side blue and red double lances as the Crow had. The Wiciska was thus of relatively recent date, possibly adopted during the period you named "Lone horn's peace"
Regaliawise they have straight and crooked otterskin wrapped lances in common with the Elkhorn scrapers but then so did many other plains societies. Wissler also states that the Wiciska was closely related to the Ihoka and sotka yuha which were als credited as having northern tribes origins. What they all have in common is marshals (with or without the notched whips) that govern the dance from horseback and no special body or face paint.
The two bonnets of the Wiciska do not fit with either Elk's, Ihoka or Sotka but are closer to the Cante tinza complex (in my opinion closer related to the Dog/Miwatanni society). The Wiciska, Ihoka and sotka also share songs.
Since we can assume that the adoption was in the 50's, if there is a connection with the Elkhorn scrapers it is probably af an even later than it's adoption.
Young man Afraid was a member of the Elkhorn scrapers so if there is a connection it may be more through this family tie than anything else.
I have read that Man Whose Horses Are Feared joined the Elk Horn Scrapers of the Northern Cheyenne, but this happened in 1865 in the big Powder River camps after Sand Creek, Platte Bridge and Julesburg, before the Southern Cheyenne returned back to the south in early 1866. Apparently this joining of each other's societies did not affect ones membership in another society and was not uncommon. I've since learned all about the Crazy Dogs and the Strong Hearts having a very close affinity and Red Cloud turned in a Crazy Dog warbonnet (headpiece of ermine tails and strips, two antelope pronghorns and a single, centered eagle feather trailer) as proof that Crazy Horse was willing to surrender. Also Roman Nose was a northern Elk and his leading Dog Soldier warparties didn't affect that status. If Man Whose Horses Are Feared brought this, surely it was the older one, but still that seems late for the Oglala to acquire the Wiciska. Where did he say this at? Mike, I didn't check this thread for some time, the information on Tashunka Kokipapi introducing the Wiciska to the Oglala is from Wissler's Societies and ceremonial associations in the Oglala division of the Teton-Dakota, page 34. Where Wissler got the information is not specified, but since J.R. Walker was doing most of the field work on Pine Ridge for him, the information probaly went trough Walker. So the information may have originally come from one of Walker's informants at Pine Ridge. American Horse was one of Walker's instructors, and brother to Tashunka Kokipapi so he might have been instrumenal in sharing that story, but that is just conjecture on my part.
Eric M.
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eric
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Post by eric on Sept 16, 2021 10:43:45 GMT -5
There were two photo's of He Dog taken during the 1877 Oglala delegation to Washington, in which he is shown carrying a knife club very similar to the one held by the man in the Wild West Show picture. It is, I believe, a snake effigy club, with the head carved like a snake's, and the brass tacks set in wavy lines to suggest scales. My copy is not to hand, but check out John C. Ewers's wonderful book on Plains Indian Sculpture, which has a great repro of the He Dog portrait, then sets it next to the first pictorial depiction of a Dakota Indian -- done by a French artist c. 1670. That early chief, styled by the artist as the "King of the Nadowessioux", is also carrying a snake effigy club. Not a knife club, but the continuity in imagery is clear. Check out the He Dog portrait, though, because it seems possible the knife club depicted in the Wild West Show image is the same one. And the Oglala Moccasin Top belonged to the same tiyospaye as He Dog, the Sore Backs. Food for thought. Kingsley, I believe He Dog's club and some of the other ones, are more likely a representation of the Wakinyan (thunderbird), the zigzag line representing lightning. Weapons in general belonged to the realm of the Wakinyan, snakes belong to the realm of their archenemies the Unktehi and Unkcegila. So, a weapon representing a snake as a symbol of power is somewhat of a contradiction.
Amos Bad Heart Bull shows a clear link between the Akicta function and these clubs in drawing no 1 of his book (Blish, a pictographiic history of the Oglala Sioux.
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eric
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Red Dog
Nov 12, 2020 6:09:40 GMT -5
Post by eric on Nov 12, 2020 6:09:40 GMT -5
Great new details on Red Dog's Oyuhpe father-in-law, Kingsley. I'm fascinated by the quirt (whip) he is holding in his hand in the 1872 image. This would be a badge of office of a leader in one of the warrior societies, but not sure as there is not a lot of detail to see unfortunately. I think I can make out brass tacks on the wooden handle (or is it my imagination?) but no fur or beads on the wrist strap. Any suggestions? Carlo, Sometimes a quirt is just that. The society officer's quirts generally had serrated edges, like a saw.
These were used to punnish trespassers of the rules. This is a plain round quirt, used to drive your horse, correct your dogs or count coup. I can't make out the brass tacks.
Eric
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 22, 2020 9:26:00 GMT -5
The man with the warbonnet and tomahawk in the bottom pictures was Identified to me as the Arapaho Wak-A-Bet by Koos van Oostrom.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 22, 2020 9:23:50 GMT -5
Powder Face Powder Face and family Yellow Bear and family Unidentified, but clearly from the same series Another from this series? I had him labelled as Cheyenne, but I'm not sure...
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 15, 2019 8:00:54 GMT -5
The quiver angle's an interesting one. I'd just assumed it was some kind of medicine. Yeah, I know about the Shoshone/Crow thing; I wonder if the (mis)identification was just someone unfamiliar with Shoshone style or maybe they thought the face paint resembled the face paint associated with Crows in other Lakota ledger art. A quiver would have a seperate bow and arrow quiver, the legs would not be on the quiver but on both ends of the strap. I don't think it's a quiver; It's his Tokala fox skin Wotawe.
Eric
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 19, 2018 11:18:31 GMT -5
well Ghost Eagle the Cheyenne and Lakota Kit Foxes were definitely related. Their songs were the same -- melodically; and, I think, in the meaning of some of the lyrics. The Lakota Miwatani society (also known as Owl Feather Headdress society and the Iyuptala) was the Lakota version of the Dog society, which is found in most of the Plains tribes. So the Miwatani society was connected to the Cheyenne Dog Soldiers. In 1849 the Brule, Oglala and Cheyenne (or elements of them) held a great gathering on the North Platte river (near forks of Platte) in which the Dog-Miwatani society held renewal ceremonies. There were marriages linking the Cheyenne and Lakota society members (marrying each others' sisters, for instance), and also hunka adoptions. An example: Two Strike, the Brule Miwatani headman, was made a Shirt Wearer (with Spotted Tail) at this gathering. He adopted a couple of Cheyenne girls as his hunka relatives, then agreed the marriage of one of them to his comrade Spotted Tail. This information is from friends at Rosebud Reservation -- pilamayaye, mitakolapi. There seem to me to be some links between the Cheyenne Elk or Crooked Lance society and the Wiciska society, but I'm only beginning to unravel some of this stuff. Hope this helps. According to Wissler the Wiciska was brought by Man Afraid from a northern tribe. Most likely the Crow since 2 of the lances are shown in several ledger drawings as being side by side blue and red double lances as the Crow had. The Wiciska was thus of relatively recent date, possibly adopted during the period you named "Lone horn's peace"
Regaliawise they have straight and crooked otterskin wrapped lances in common with the Elkhorn scrapers but then so did many other plains societies. Wissler also states that the Wiciska was closely related to the Ihoka and sotka yuha which were als credited as having northern tribes origins. What they all have in common is marshals (with or without the notched whips) that govern the dance from horseback and no special body or face paint.
The two bonnets of the Wiciska do not fit with either Elk's, Ihoka or Sotka but are closer to the Cante tinza complex (in my opinion closer related to the Dog/Miwatanni society). The Wiciska, Ihoka and sotka also share songs.
Since we can assume that the adoption was in the 50's, if there is a connection with the Elkhorn scrapers it is probably af an even later than it's adoption.
Young man Afraid was a member of the Elkhorn scrapers so if there is a connection it may be more through this family tie than anything else.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 26, 2017 12:28:05 GMT -5
Henri has sent me this picture of a pipebag, which is in a museum in Belgium. To me it looks exactly like the one hold by Yellow Hawk. I don´t know if it belongs to him, because Spotted Horse holds the same pipebag as well (look in the "Two Kettles"-thread): Bedankt Henri! It is indeed that pipebag, I saw it up close when I was consulting and doing concervation work for an exhibition in 1999. The pipebag was most likely a studio prop, it was photographed in the hands of Yellow Hawk (Sans Arc), Little Bird (Yankton), Francis Jandron (Yankton), Spotted Horse (Sans Arc), He Kills first (Miniconjou). Most of the collection in Brussels, Belgium was collected either by the famous Jesuit Father De Smet as gifts to his benefactors (among which the Belgian Royal family), or by a collector named Bayer. But I can not be sure if either of those two actually did send it to Belgium. The bag is in the 1999 "Indian summer" exhibition catalogue, I believe it to be Yankton or Yanktonai (or even Cree,) most likely not Teton.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 26, 2017 8:29:13 GMT -5
The man standing in the middle of the Photo gives a good example of how bandolier bags were used (swung over both shoulders with bag and powderhorn in the back) to hold up the robe(or blanket). Kurz gives a view from the back in one of his drawings.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 20, 2017 6:45:30 GMT -5
Here´s my favorite one from that series: Photograph (black and white) from an album; portrait of (from left to right) Fast Bear, Shotted Tail, John, Long Hair, and Palladay (sitting in the front); Fast Bear is standing on the far left, wearing a hat, and wrapped in a blanket with tassels; Shotted Tail, stands second from the left, wearing a piece of cloth tied around his neck, a shirt, and a blanket wrapped around himself; John is standing on the far right, wearing a hat with a feather and a section of his hair wrapped in cloth and wearing a shirt, and wrapped in a blanket; Long Hair, sits on the far right, with his hair in two section wrapped in cloth, wearing a piece of cloth tied around his neck, a shirt, and a blanket wrapped around himself, whilst holding a pipe(?); Pallasay, sits in the foreground in the centre, wearing a hat, a shirt, and a pair of trousers; in the background on the left, is a western-style building; directly behind the men, is a pile of tree logs; (text from British Museum site) Shotted Tail is of course Sicangu chief Spotted Tail, John is clearly Flatnose John, also a Sicangu. There are other portraits of him, by W.R. Cross for example. Palladay is Leon Palladay, a well known figure at Fort Laramie. Fast Bear should be Quick Bear, the Wazhazha, but because of the hat and it´s shadow I am not 100 percent sure about him. I know nothing about Long Hair.I believe Long Hair is holding either a single shot pistol or probably a (so called) blanket gun, the shaft and ramrod are visible below the barrel.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 20, 2017 6:42:04 GMT -5
Here´s my favorite one from that series: Photograph (black and white) from an album; portrait of (from left to right) Fast Bear, Shotted Tail, John, Long Hair, and Palladay (sitting in the front); Fast Bear is standing on the far left, wearing a hat, and wrapped in a blanket with tassels; Shotted Tail, stands second from the left, wearing a piece of cloth tied around his neck, a shirt, and a blanket wrapped around himself; John is standing on the far right, wearing a hat with a feather and a section of his hair wrapped in cloth and wearing a shirt, and wrapped in a blanket; Long Hair, sits on the far right, with his hair in two section wrapped in cloth, wearing a piece of cloth tied around his neck, a shirt, and a blanket wrapped around himself, whilst holding a pipe(?); Pallasay, sits in the foreground in the centre, wearing a hat, a shirt, and a pair of trousers; in the background on the left, is a western-style building; directly behind the men, is a pile of tree logs; (text from British Museum site) Shotted Tail is of course Sicangu chief Spotted Tail, John is clearly Flatnose John, also a Sicangu. There are other portraits of him, by W.R. Cross for example. Palladay is Leon Palladay, a well known figure at Fort Laramie. Fast Bear should be Quick Bear, the Wazhazha, but because of the hat and it´s shadow I am not 100 percent sure about him. I know nothing about Long Hair.
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eric
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Post by eric on Apr 2, 2017 12:08:50 GMT -5
Greetings everyone...need some help with an oral history/tradition about Lame White Man and his death at the Little Big Horn battle. I've always followed John Stands In Timber's narrative as the most accurate. One of White Bird's paintings (in the St. Louis Art Museum) shows a cavalry formation being attacked and one of the warriors is dressed only in a blanket and has loose hair. I've long thought that figure represented Lame White Man. I was contacted this past week by a writer wanting to know more about the blue cavalry jacket Lame White Man put on from a dead soldier and then was killed by mistake by some Lakotas thinking he was an army scout. I've never heard that story until now. The gentleman said it's in an oral account from Yellow Nose. I've searched everything I have and then some and find nothing like this story. Any help as to the location of this account is appreciated. Thanks and have a great day! Regards, Rod... Hello Rod, Mayby a bit late since your post is almost a year old. I don't no where the account is supposed to be, but I guess it is mor likely in reference to the The Elkhorn scraper warriors being called blue soldiers for the soldiers coats the would wear (ccaptured after the fetterman fight), Lame white man was one of the societies chiefs. Wooden Leg who found Lame white man does not mention this, he states " he was still wearing his best clothing", that does not mean it was not a blue soldiers jacket, but I would guess if it were he might have mentioned it as a possible cause of him being scalped by the Sioux, which he doesn't, merely stating that he may have been scalped erroneously for being found among the soldiers that were killed in the first counter charge.
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eric
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Post by eric on Dec 8, 2016 9:58:12 GMT -5
In my opinion Grahamew is correct, the He Dog Club is very similar but not the same as Mocasin Top's.
A stone headed club is the insignia of the Akicita Itancan, these have three (usally but not always black) stripes painted on the left cheek (compare to the Big Road roster). origally these were stone headed clubs. The ones with the pipe bags on the roster are wakicunze. the other (one stripe on the cheek) are men performing Akicita duty, it may be just a way to show that all these at some time did their duty to their people.
Concerning the length of some of the knife blade clubs, on horseback they make a lot more sense...in general woodland clubs (of any kind) are shorter (pedestrian warfare) than Plains war clubs (equestrian warfare). stone clubs are to "top-heavy" to be made this long, the butcher knife blades are a lot lighter and make a club of this length possible and a formidable weapon combined with the hight and speed of a horse.
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eric
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Post by eric on Oct 8, 2016 12:40:39 GMT -5
I'm writing the essay, the third man from the left is called chief Whale, one of Lowie's informants on the Eastern Sioux Miwatanni was called Whale, the person next to him(a swift bear) wears what appears to be a Miwatanni owl feather Bonnet.
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eric
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Post by eric on Aug 30, 2016 6:13:44 GMT -5
Grahamew,
Do you think it could be a sash, like that of Cheyenne Hota Mita Niyu or Sioux Miwatani society, with the lower part of it disappearing behind the horses right flank? Most likely he would have tucked the tip in his belt on the right side, so it would not bother his horse, or get caught somhow. It would also explain the eagle feather(s) hanging from it, below his left shoulder.
On the other hand, if you blow up the picture, it sort of looks like there som kind of bulge,next to his armpit, which could mean it is simply some charme tied in a big piece of trade cloth, ornamented with a couple of feathers and hung from a cloth strip or strap of an ammunition pouch.
Sorry, I reacted before I read the rest of the thread, and the theory with the pipe bundle makes a lot of sense.
Eric
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