Ethnologisches Museum (Völkerkunde Museum) Berlin, Germany
Feb 2, 2020 10:11:12 GMT -5
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THE OLD TIPI COVER
IN THE
ETHNOLOGICAL MUSEUM BERLIN
Manuscript for the ethnological description
of objects about the leather tarpaulin
in the Berlin Ethnographic Museum
Autor
Gerhard Kraft
© 1991-2020
CONTENT
1. FOREWORD
2. BASICS
3. THE TIPI-COVER
3.1 Explanations to the figurative representations
3.2 Picture Group I / The great central main picture
3.3 Picture Group II / Picture on the left smoke flap
3.4 Picture Group III / Group of animal around the morning star
3.5 Picture Group IV /Middle left input side
3.6 Picture Group V / Left, lower half of the tent
3.7 Picture Group VI / Below the right sun wheel
3.8 Picture Group VII / Right tent side left under the “Unman”
3.9 Picture Group VIII / Right tent input below
3.10 Picture Group IX / The “Unman”
3.11 Picture Group X / Upper half of ridgt side and right smoking flap area
3.12 Classification of the picture groups
4. THE ENTRENCE DOOR
5. BIBLIOGRAPHIE
1. FOREWORD
In the Berlin Ethnological Museum Berlin there is an extraordinary american Indian tent tarpaulin made from tanned bison leather. This item belongs to the older exhibits of the museum that has survived the Second World War and the post-war period. The tarpaulin originally came from the Köhler Collection, which came into the possession of the Royal Art Chamber and the Ethnographic Cabinet in 1846. In 1873 the ethnology Museum was founded from the former Art chamber and its historical holdings. On December 12, 1973, the Museum of Ethnology celebrated its centenary. On this occasion, the department "American indigenous peoples" was commissioned to put together an exhibition of objects from the North American grasslands. In addition to exhibits by Duke Paul von Württemberg, Prince Maximilian zu Wied and other collectors, objects from the Friedrich Köhler collection were also exhibited with the tarpaulin already mentioned. The museum knows no details about Friedrich Köhler, it is only known that he was a valet of a French diplomat in Washington.
Since no documents on this subject were included when the tent tarpaulin was handed over to the Art chamber at the time, only assumptions can be made regarding the origin, the date of origin and the like. But for the tent it would mean that it is much older than the year 1846. Due to the lack of detailed documentation about the tent and its front door, this now gives rise to a wealth of assumptions and speculations about the content of the statements on the pictures shown on the tarpaulin. A great deal of effort and care is required to be able to describe the individual frescoes as real and credible as possible. In addition to understanding the culture and history of the Native Americans and their descendants, it is also essential in my opinion to use the mindset and mythology for assessment. Here you can often find hidden information that can be of crucial importance and can therefore are very helpful.
Information about the myths is important for the reconstruction and description of certain objects and is often so strange to us that it is not believed to be true. Many misunderstandings in the explanation of objects from another culture also arise from the fact that mythical metaphors are interpreted as indications of irrefutable facts. I think I have taken the necessary care in the description of this tent tarpaulin in order to give a possibly credible and reasonably accurate explanation of the individual representations. Ultimately however, not all of the drawings could be described without a doubt, and many questions and answers therefore remain unanswered.
2. BASICS
For every viewer who takes a look at this object, the eye-catching painted colored representations are an impressive eye-catcher. The tent object consists of a total of two parts which consists of the actual tarpaulin and an entrance door. Both articles are made of soft tanned leather. The tent itself corresponds to the type of old leather habitations of indigenous peoples in the prairie area before having canvas tents. The most striking thing about the tarpaulin is the dimensions. Measured by the cross point results in a height of 1.70 meters and a diameter of 2.45 meters. These dimensions are far too small for a living tent, which should give accommodation to an entire family. Also the possibility to consider it is a game or model tent fails because of the dimensions, because the size is again too big. This means that you have to look for the purpose in a different context and scope.
On closer inspection you can see more irregularity at the smoke flaps located in the upper part of the tarpaulin. The loops for the tent poles are in the inner and unpainted area and not as usual on the outside as it was generally the case in the tents. It can now be assumed that the figurative depictions were inside after the tent construction and could not be seen from the outside. Thus, eliminates the possibility that this is a play tent for children, because the mystical drawings refute this. On the basis of the representations, it is easier to understand that the object must be a tarpaulin that had its application in the ceremonial or spiritual realm. It can not be completely ruled out that the tent was used as a repository for holy objects used for certain ceremonies. Striking is the large pipe located in the middle of the tarpaulin and there is now the suspicion that it is the place where the sacred pipe of the tribe concerned was kept and it was shown to the public only in ceremonies. This is characterized by the fact that the representations of all paintings after setting up the tent are to be considered only from the inside. This also confirms the thesis that the drawings were only accessible to a certain group of people.
Also worthy of note are the figurative depictions of horsemen who, because of their insignia, are supposed to represent single or a specific warrior society. It is now becoming more and more probable that this tepee was the repository of the medicine bundle and the sacred pipe of a particular warrior society. It could have been used in a society tent like an altar, and for the specific rituals of the society, one then opened the tent to make the paintings inside visible. This would be an obvious explanation, because in our culture we have in our churches also so-called showcases on the altars that are opened at certain celebrations and reveal their inner life. The whistle and whip symbols on the front door support the theory with the society tent. Why this tarpaulin changes its original owner is explained by the fact that in most warrior society’s it is usual to renew the entire regalia after a certain period of time and you no longer have not to had use for these tarpaulins and you sell to another person.
After the probably not completely clear clarification about the intended use results in the next question of the tribal affiliation. Certain clues suggest that this is an object of the Sioux-speaking peoples from the central prairie area. On the basis of some graphics one finds enough clues that confirm this thesis and also the representation of single figures reinforces this assumption that it is an object of the Dakota or Teton-Dakota. However a fancy picture writing was widespread among all Native American artists. Their depictions were usually not what they had seen, but rather something out of memories visions or traditions. As is known, the art of drawing was not only used by the North American indigenous peoples alone for their objective presentation, but also included ideographic relationships between the individual figures. Depending on the culture level of the tribe the pictures were more or less pronounced. In connection with the pictorial representations there was a category, the so-called mnemonic records. They represented songs as well as stories from traditions in which the individual figures formed the content of stanzas and sentences. Comparably this could be compared with the ballad singers from the European middle ages. The images supported the memory of the narrator like a prompter in a theater piece. Uninitiated the images did not provide any clues as to the content and context of the individual representations let alone the extent of the stories.
What is striking about the individual drawings are the different representations of the drawings. At least two artists must have worked here at different times. The one in the simple sense was only a draftsman while the other hand was more of an artist. Frederick Weygold in his report on this subject explains that in his opinion the larger images were burned into the leather hide. Where he got the information to this statement is not known.
Usually such motifs were first pressed with a sharp object of wood or bone in the wet leather and then filled with color. This type of painting technique was found in almost all prairie trunks. The colors used for the figurative representations presumably consist of indigenous earth colors which were preserved with grease or glue water. In the simpler drawings, one must assume that they are representations made with red chalk.
3. THE TIPI COVER
3.1. Explanations to the figurative representations
The pictorial art on the tarpaulin consists of more than a hundred figurative and abstract representations. A major eye-catcher are the relatively cleanly painted large motifs such as the large feathered Calumet in the middle part of the tarpaulin, as well as the morning star and the two large sun wheels with the feather rays.
The remaining figures are rather simple in nature and show pictorial portraits of cranes, hares, eagles and other birds. Furthermore, there are other buffaloes, as well as horses with and without riders, bears, a deer, turtles, snakes, smaller predators and rodents, fish, more spring rays, celestial bodies, and symbols of the four cardinal directions, a dragonfly and sage plants. Among the red chalk drawings, a figure standing next to the right sun wheel stands out from the others. The drawing shows the "Umane" of the Dakota, which is explained in detail in the group of figures IX.
3.2. Picture group I / The great central main picture
The picture in picture group I consists of six individual figurative elements. The most striking feature is the oversized portrait of a Holy Pipe (A). There are four strikingly large wing-like figment on their pipe and are the symbol for the four directions (tate topa). On the upper part, thus on the mouthpiece of this pipe, you can see a star (B) which is most likely the morning star. Below the red pipe bowl is a black bison (C), which symbolizes the holy mother earth (maka ina). Right next to the smoking pipe are two large horned snakes (D) and a slightly smaller one (E) slightly below. To the right and left of the snakes are two large sun gears. If you now take a closer look at the individual drawings on the tarpaulin, you can see that they come from two different artists and the snakes were only added afterwards. For the large elements, the painter sketched the outlines with black paint and painted them with the remaining colors out. Like all other drawings, the snakes were painted directly with the intended color without a contour. On the pipe stem itself you can still recognize so-called> ears of corn <, which symbolize the small ears of corn on the cob. These ears of corn are sign among the Teton Dakota (Lakota) that stand for food and have an important aspect in the Huŋka ceremony (making relatives).
_Picture 1: Detail view of the big main group I.
Even the previous description shows that the tipi cover is a ceremonial object. To get a better context, a short explanation of each element is an advantage. In the mythology of the prairie Indians, the smoking pipe is a fixed component part of the individual legends of many tribes. Mostly, the sacred whistle is always related to the buffalo. Among the Sioux, the sacred pipe Caŋuŋpa wakaŋ is called. She is said to have supernatural and inexhaustible powers, which is why she is also considered sacred. She always serves as a link between the powers of the universe and humanity. The first pipe flues were always offered to the four cardinal points, then to the sky, and to the sun and the earth. As a sign of the infinite, the painter used the image of the star, which he depicted in light green color. Immediately related to the whistle, the buffalo painted below embodies the earth and humanity. For many Native Americans, the bison is a sacred animal that is not just considered a food donor. Especially the white buffalo stood here at the top.
The White Buffalo legend has been known to the indigenous peoples for more than 2,000 years and has been shared on every occasion and at countless council meetings, as well passed in sacred ceremonies and by the storytellers of the tribe. There are innumerable different representations in the stories, but all statements always point to the same event in order to establish communication with the powers of the universe and the Great Spirit through prayer. The clear intention was to ask for peace, harmony and balance for all life on Mother Earth.
Among the Lakota Sioux they told the short version of the history of White Buffalo as follows:
"It was in the old days, long before the Sioux had horses, that people lost the ability to communicate with the Great Spirit (Wakaŋ Taŋka, or affectionately called Tuŋkasila Wakan Tanka, grandfather spirit) and the universe. A big famine came over the people of the Lakota and the Great Spirit sent now by the buffalo people (Pte Oyate) a white buffalo calf to the starving Sioux. They were two Itazipco Lakota scouts who were sent to hunt wild animals, and one day they encountered a mystical figure who first showed them in the figure of a white Buffalo calf and then became a beautiful woman in white leather clothed with wonderful patterns of brightly colored porcupine bristles. The extraordinary woman was Ptesan Wi, the White Buffalo Calf Woman. The White Buffalo Calf Woman brought the sacred whistle to the Lakota Caŋuŋpa Wakaŋ and taught them the right way to pray, to find the right words and gestures. She also taught the Lakota how to sing songs to fill the pipe and how one the Pipe aligns to the Great Spirit and Uŋci maka (Grandmother Earth) as well as to Tatuye topa the four cardinal directions of the Universe.”
With the bundle of the sacred pipe Ptesan Wi brought the Lakota also the seven holy ceremonies.
Wicoh'an Wakan Sakowin (Seven Holy Rites)
1. Inikagapi or Inipi (The sweat lodge to renew life)
2. Hanbleceyapi (crying for a vision, looking for a vision and name naming)
3. Wanagi Wicagluha (preservation of the mind;)
4. Wiwanyang Wacipi: The dance with the sun to pray for the well-being of all people
5. Hunkapi: (the adoption ceremony, kinship)
6. Isnati Awicalowanpi: (puberty ceremony)
7. Tapa Wankayeyapi: (throwing the ball)
When the teaching of the sacred paths was completed, White Buffalo Calf Woman told the Lakota that she would return to the sacred bundle she had given to the Lakota. Before she left, she told them about the four epochs of time and that she would look back at them in every epoch. At the end of the fourth age, she would return to restore harmony and spirituality in the land. Then she made her way and approached the setting sun. After she had gone a short distance, she looked back to the people and sat down on the ground. When she got up again, people were amazed to see that she had become a black buffalo. A little further, the buffalo lay down again, this time she was a yellow buffalo. The third time the buffalo went a little further and this time he stood up as a red buffalo. On the last piece he rolled on the floor and rose once more as a white buffalo calf, completing the fulfillment of the White Buffalo Calf Prophecy.
The change of the four colors that Ptesan Wi performed was taken over by the Lakota in the sacred medicine wheel and indicate the four cardinal directions North, West, East and South. So the color red stands for the north, black for the west, yellow for the east, and white is the south.
The sacred bundle left to the Lakota is still at a sacred site in the Indian Reservation of the Cheyenne River in South Dakota. It's kept by a man known as the guardian of the White Buffalo Calf Pipe, it's Arvol Looking Horse.
Picture 2: Detailed view of the left and right snake head.
Let us return to the central pattern on our leather tarpaulin. Here, to the right and left of the great central main unit, we find two oversized snakes (D) that show differences in appearance. At first glance, there is nothing special about the animals, but on closer inspection you can see two horns on the head and a funnel-shaped mouth from which a wavy line emerges. These extraordinary characters are meant to describe the power of animals.
Among the indigenous inhabitants of the Great Plains, there were countless reptiles and underwater monsters depicted as giant horned water snakes or oversized birds. This is probably due to the fact that with the colonization of the North American continent by the Europeans and the steadily increasing number of white immigrants, the indigenous people were pushed further and further into unknown areas, and thus came into contact with fossil bones of primeval animals, this was probably In the spring after the meltdown on the banks of rivers and lakes uncovered and since one did not know such bones they had to come from another world. It could have been the water monsters bones of mastodons that looked like huge snakes with big horns. You did not know other animals that had their horns carried forward and were completely unknown even elephant-like creatures like the mammoth. Therefore, the skull was simply turned upwards and had a huge head with huge horns that emerged from the skull of a terrible creature. Since the remaining bones could not be assigned, they had to come from a giant snake. Like the monster image of a horned water monster, the so-called thunderbirds may also have originated from the finds of pterosaur skeletons.
The two snakes are apparently the water and snake monsters Uŋcegula and Uŋktehi. They were considered a symbol for the "ancestors of the rattlesnake". Uŋcegula was the female animal and Uŋktehi the male counterpart. The wavy lines coming from the mouth are sometimes referred to as lines of holiness. Such lines were used in the pictorial writings combined representations between humans and animals and inanimate objects in order to indicate the supernatural and sacred and their belonging.
According to the Sioux belief, the snake monsters Uŋcegula and Uŋktehi were sent to earth by the Great Spirit to remind people that they had broken off contact with him. Uŋktehi was therefore a powerful, supernatural, male being with horns on his head and razor-sharp teeth. He had an elongated, scaly body with four legs, a very long, strong tail and horns on his head that could protrude into the clouds. His claws were claws like iron and some also claimed that he had long hair on his head and neck. Uŋktehi preferred the environment of waters such as rivers and lakes, where he caused accidents with humans and animals and then to kill and eat them with his tail. However, it was also reported that he was not invulnerable and his heart was said to be behind the seventh spot on his body. According to tradition, he could only be killed with holy medicine arrows that hit him at this place.
“Although Uŋktehi was friendly to the birds and animals that lived on and in the water, he still had a very powerful enemy in Wakinyan that the Great Spirit sent to kill him. However, when he started killing people to feed on them, the Lakota started hunting for the monster. According to old traditions, a medicine woman is said to have chosen two twin brothers to kill the monster. The two brothers fired at the medicine arrows on Uŋktehi they received from the medicine woman and wounded him very badly and when he of it meandered, he caused great damage to the country. Eventually he died and the sun scorched his flesh and dried up the land, forming the Badlands (Mako sica) in South Dakota.”
Not only this story is still present today but also that of the family from the bear clan, which was eaten by the monster. Her leader a great brave warrior had a knife with him on the advice of the weasel spirit to cut himself and his family out of the monster's belly and thus save the family.
While originally there was no real shape for Uŋcegula it probably had fire eyes and a jagged mouth, which was covered with a smoky or cloudy mass. Over time, its shape became massive, getting a long scaly body, the natural armor of which was almost impenetrable. Her eyes burned with angry hunger and her voice raged like the rumble of thunder in the clouds. Whoever looked at her became blind or crazy and she splashed water out of her mouth and flooded the land. Sometimes came muddy and bad water should have come from her mouth with which she poisoned the water for humans and animals. According to the traditions of the Sioux Unhcegila is one of the dangerous water monsters that lived in antiquity and their arrival has been announced to the Lakota by the Blackfoot from the north. This is the story:
“When Uŋcegula came to the Lakota, she flooded the whole country with water. As the water rose and the land continued to flooded the Lakota ran to up a high hill next to what is now the Minnesota Pipestone Quarry. People climbed up there to save themselves. But it didn't help the water reached people halfway to the hill. The waves swirled around the rocks and battlements, pulling people with them. Everyone was killed and all the blood gushed together into a large lake. When the tide was over the blood turned to stone and so the Pipestone Quarry in Minnesota was created it was the grave of the people who lost their lives.”
“That is why the Lakota-Sioux pipes are made from this red stone and so sacred. The red stone embodies the flesh and blood of their ancestors and the stalk of the pipe represents the backbone of those people who have long been dead, and the smoke that rises from the pipe is their breath. The devastation that Uŋcegula caused angered Wakinyan so much that his wings flapped so violently and triggered a great storm that dried up the land and he then killed Uŋcegula with his flashes. Her heart was killed and her bones scattered in the Badlands (Mako sica) of South Dakota.”
According to information from the Lakota, it is said to have formed a high rock formation from its spine here. The swirls of the monster snake protrude here in a long row of red and yellow stones. According to the knowledge from the mythology of the Lakota about the water snakes and monsters, one could even make an assignment of the two large horned snakes. So the left snake would represent Uŋktehi and the right snake would be Uŋcegula.
In the lower area of the left great snake there is also a much smaller horned rattlesnake (E), the drawing of which is only vaguely and incompletely recognizable on the tarpaulin. The contours of this animal are shown in yellow color. On the outlines, there are feet and fins and are just as yellow as the body. This drawing was probably and intentionally painted incompletely and is supposed to emulate the original shape of the large water monster. It is said to have been a rattlesnake in its original form, which lived in rivers and on the shores of the lake. It brought death and destruction to those who, according to the Dakota-Sioux and probably some other tribes, were exposed to it. This may have been the reason why the artist depicted them in an unfinished and dismembered state.
If you take a closer look at the two sun gears you can see a different number of sun rays, the left wheel has twenty-three and the right wheel has thirty-two. However, the two green shields on which the feather rays are located have an almost identical diameter and do not contribute to the fact that there is an differently number of rays. In my opinion, the amount of rays in the two sun gears also has no spiritual or mystical background. One of the most obvious explanations for this is that the artist used different widths to create the diamonds and that this resulted in an uneven amount of rhombuses. The green base color of the shields means that they are closely related to the morning star symbol (B) and the large calumet. The red center point in the shield is the simple graphic representation of a sun.
_Picture 3: Illustration of the two sun wheels / sun shields.
Earlier reports by the then explorer George Catlin and Prince Maximilian zu Wied indicate that the Indians have presented the rays of the sun in such portraits by depicting feathers of the golden eagle (Golden Eagle). This way of thinking seems to be similar to what one used in the feather hoods of the chiefs and called them sun hoods. Thus, the head of the wearer was surrounded by a halo. This also explains the zigzag and rectangle motifs found on the headbands of the hoods. They almost always had the same ornaments and thus form a connection to the sun's rays. The hooks or lines on the tips show small tufts of human hair and are comparable to those that are also on the spring hoods.
3.3. Picture group II / Picture on the left smoke flap
The picture group II start in the upper area of the left smoke flap, where there are on the outside of the pockets for the tent poles that raise the smoke flaps up. Here we see a single larger spring element (1) and a little further down two other smaller springs which are arranged parallel to the edge of the smoke flap. They are in turn synonymous with the sunbeams that are sent to earth and thus represent a sacred appreciation. This is underpinned by the color combination red and green. The color red in this drawing meant the sacred and green stands for the earth.
Picture 4: Detail picture on the elements of the left upper smoke flap.
Two plant forms can also be seen. The first are Sage (2) and a cedar branches (3). These two plants were considered sacred plants in almost all tribes of the prairie room. Cedar branches were often placed in the upper part of the medicine huts to keep away the bad. The Sage is seen as a purifying power. In the figure (4) shows a thunder bird which is shown with green of holiness line on the body. While figure (5) symbolizes a red mystical mammal. Under (6) an undefinable shape is sketched.
3.4. Picture group III / Group of animals around the morning star
The picture group IV is at the upper part of the big pipe, where the morning star is. The group consists of the pair of cranes (1) with the snakes in their beaks, then a thunder bird (2) and two red rabbits (3). The pair of cranes were arranged to enclose the morning star from group I which is located at the mouthpiece of the sacred pipe.
_Picture 5: Detail view of the picture group IV with cranes, snakes, rabbits and Thunderbird.
The two rabbits seem to be extraordinary, but the rabbit's medicine is about moving through fear and acting according to one's own mind. The rabbit also reminds us not to be afraid. Anxious thoughts multiply very quickly and do exactly what we are most afraid of. Furthermore, the rabbit teaches us to be humble and to reevaluate our fears at any time and to free ourselves from negative feelings and obstacles.
3.5. Picture group IV / Middle left input side
The picture group V is located on the left side of the tarpaulin next to the holes for the front wooden pins to lock the tent. Figure (1) shows a bear and slightly below it you can see a yellow wapiti deer (2). These figures probably also include the thunder bird (3) which was probably drawn in connection with the human couple (4). The human couple of people stands for sexual coexistence and reproduction between men and women. This could well be closely related and in a spiritual relationship with the other three animal images, in order to ensure the survival of the tribe.
Picture 6: Detail view of the picture group IV with Bear, wapiti deer, thunderbird and human couple
It is important to know that the bear is always associated with the dreams of Wakaŋ taŋka the Great Spirit. This is due to the fact that the bear hibernating and thus gets a look back on the past. The Bear Cave stands as a symbol of going back to the body of Mother Earth. Someone who owns bear medicine is considered self-employed and prefers to stand on his own two feet. Often, these people are also considered as dreamers who have the ability to present new things vividly. They often get too caught up in their dreams, so that after awakening only a modest success was achieved. The typical teaching of bear medicine includes solitude, introspection, and communication with the Great Spirit, death, and rebirth.
Unlike the bear, the deer (hehaka) adapts to its environment and is very sensitive to the sounds and movements in its environment. Hirsch people are therefore often referred to as fast and attentive. They make many of their decisions out of their guts and tend to supernatural perceptions and their thoughts always seem to run ahead. Thus, the spirit of the deer also conveys the teaching of sacrificing oneself for the higher good, developing a sense of what is necessary for survival. Furthermore, to find the gentleness of spirit of the mind that heals all wounds and quit harassing and changing others. In the old days, the Hehaka people were used as medics in battles and wars, they were a little way from combat on a hill. In order to be well visible to all, they wore feather bonnets and were used, for example, when it was necessary to quickly rescue one or several wounded from the battlefield. They use a bison's skin to which they attached a lasso, she ride on the battlefield and brought the injured on the buffalo hide out of the danger zone to safety.
3.6. Picture group V / Left, lower half of the tent
Group V starts on the left side of the tent, next to the entrance. The figure (1) is a red rider with a red horse and is located below the human couple from picture group IV. A little above next to the left sun wheel is lining drawing (2) a green thunder bird and above it with picture (3) a green turtle.
Picture 7: Detailed pictures of the individual rider and horse pictures in group V.
At the bottom of the tent, it continue with the figure (4), which shows a red rider who is probably a member of a warrior society. He is holding a curved eagle stick and has probably tied a stuffed bird tied in his hair. The curved eagle stick represents the umbilical cord between humans (the Tiyospaye) and mother earth (Unci maka) and belong to the Akicita societies. You cannot tell which warrior society was represented here. Above the rider are two green stars (5), which probably embody an earth symbol.
It continues with the next rider picture (6), a red rider on a yellow horse, wearing an eagle feather headdress. Not far from there along the edge of the tent is a portrait of a black horse (7) and above it a larger green turtle (8) with a pattern on the back. Figure (9) and (10) are two other horses, drawn with a red color on the one hand and drawn as a green horse on the other. Near the big smoking pipe with the number (11) is a somewhat mystical rider with a horse painted green and red, he holds his war shield in his right hand and this has the same colour as his horse. Finally, you can see a green rider (12) with a green horse underneath.
The equestrian images depicted on the tent and other individual representations can only be sparsely recognized. The remaining figures were probably damaged by the heavy stress on the tarpaulin.
3.7. Picture group VI / Below the right sun wheel
Image group VI is located below the right sun gear. In this group, the painter also chose the combination of animal and human representations. The first picture is a green thunderbird, which is located between the right large snake and the sun gear. Directly underneath, the following two pictures (2 & 3) show a green and a yellow horse. In picture (5) there follows a second green horse with a warrior (4) holding a lance in his hand. What is striking about the horseman is a cape that he wears around his shoulder and wave backwards. In Amos Bad Heart Bull's drawings in the book “Pictographic History of the Oglala Sioux”, individual riders with different cloaks are often shown during parades and are believed to be the identification mark of a war leader (blotohunka).
Picture 8 Details of group VI with human and animal representations.
Further animal representations now follow, beginning with a crane, a turtle, a fish and a bear (Figure 5-8). Fig. (8) shows a bear that apparently has a mystical reference. The Iron grizzly bear (in blue-green color) had magical powers, especially with those tribal groups who were unfamiliar with the processing of metal. Figure (9) is again a horseman in yellow and dressed with a feather hood or a turban on his head and also with a cape. Number (10) forms the conclusion and reveals another rider figure.
All of these figurative equestrian portraits could be mnemonic recordings of songs, each character expressing the content of a complete song or verse. The arrangement of all the drawings also suggests a certain scheme, which is in order from top to bottom and thus embodies heaven and earth and water.
********ThE END OF PART One*********
IN THE
ETHNOLOGICAL MUSEUM BERLIN
Manuscript for the ethnological description
of objects about the leather tarpaulin
in the Berlin Ethnographic Museum
Autor
Gerhard Kraft
© 1991-2020
CONTENT
1. FOREWORD
2. BASICS
3. THE TIPI-COVER
3.1 Explanations to the figurative representations
3.2 Picture Group I / The great central main picture
3.3 Picture Group II / Picture on the left smoke flap
3.4 Picture Group III / Group of animal around the morning star
3.5 Picture Group IV /Middle left input side
3.6 Picture Group V / Left, lower half of the tent
3.7 Picture Group VI / Below the right sun wheel
3.8 Picture Group VII / Right tent side left under the “Unman”
3.9 Picture Group VIII / Right tent input below
3.10 Picture Group IX / The “Unman”
3.11 Picture Group X / Upper half of ridgt side and right smoking flap area
3.12 Classification of the picture groups
4. THE ENTRENCE DOOR
5. BIBLIOGRAPHIE
1. FOREWORD
In the Berlin Ethnological Museum Berlin there is an extraordinary american Indian tent tarpaulin made from tanned bison leather. This item belongs to the older exhibits of the museum that has survived the Second World War and the post-war period. The tarpaulin originally came from the Köhler Collection, which came into the possession of the Royal Art Chamber and the Ethnographic Cabinet in 1846. In 1873 the ethnology Museum was founded from the former Art chamber and its historical holdings. On December 12, 1973, the Museum of Ethnology celebrated its centenary. On this occasion, the department "American indigenous peoples" was commissioned to put together an exhibition of objects from the North American grasslands. In addition to exhibits by Duke Paul von Württemberg, Prince Maximilian zu Wied and other collectors, objects from the Friedrich Köhler collection were also exhibited with the tarpaulin already mentioned. The museum knows no details about Friedrich Köhler, it is only known that he was a valet of a French diplomat in Washington.
Since no documents on this subject were included when the tent tarpaulin was handed over to the Art chamber at the time, only assumptions can be made regarding the origin, the date of origin and the like. But for the tent it would mean that it is much older than the year 1846. Due to the lack of detailed documentation about the tent and its front door, this now gives rise to a wealth of assumptions and speculations about the content of the statements on the pictures shown on the tarpaulin. A great deal of effort and care is required to be able to describe the individual frescoes as real and credible as possible. In addition to understanding the culture and history of the Native Americans and their descendants, it is also essential in my opinion to use the mindset and mythology for assessment. Here you can often find hidden information that can be of crucial importance and can therefore are very helpful.
Information about the myths is important for the reconstruction and description of certain objects and is often so strange to us that it is not believed to be true. Many misunderstandings in the explanation of objects from another culture also arise from the fact that mythical metaphors are interpreted as indications of irrefutable facts. I think I have taken the necessary care in the description of this tent tarpaulin in order to give a possibly credible and reasonably accurate explanation of the individual representations. Ultimately however, not all of the drawings could be described without a doubt, and many questions and answers therefore remain unanswered.
2. BASICS
For every viewer who takes a look at this object, the eye-catching painted colored representations are an impressive eye-catcher. The tent object consists of a total of two parts which consists of the actual tarpaulin and an entrance door. Both articles are made of soft tanned leather. The tent itself corresponds to the type of old leather habitations of indigenous peoples in the prairie area before having canvas tents. The most striking thing about the tarpaulin is the dimensions. Measured by the cross point results in a height of 1.70 meters and a diameter of 2.45 meters. These dimensions are far too small for a living tent, which should give accommodation to an entire family. Also the possibility to consider it is a game or model tent fails because of the dimensions, because the size is again too big. This means that you have to look for the purpose in a different context and scope.
On closer inspection you can see more irregularity at the smoke flaps located in the upper part of the tarpaulin. The loops for the tent poles are in the inner and unpainted area and not as usual on the outside as it was generally the case in the tents. It can now be assumed that the figurative depictions were inside after the tent construction and could not be seen from the outside. Thus, eliminates the possibility that this is a play tent for children, because the mystical drawings refute this. On the basis of the representations, it is easier to understand that the object must be a tarpaulin that had its application in the ceremonial or spiritual realm. It can not be completely ruled out that the tent was used as a repository for holy objects used for certain ceremonies. Striking is the large pipe located in the middle of the tarpaulin and there is now the suspicion that it is the place where the sacred pipe of the tribe concerned was kept and it was shown to the public only in ceremonies. This is characterized by the fact that the representations of all paintings after setting up the tent are to be considered only from the inside. This also confirms the thesis that the drawings were only accessible to a certain group of people.
Also worthy of note are the figurative depictions of horsemen who, because of their insignia, are supposed to represent single or a specific warrior society. It is now becoming more and more probable that this tepee was the repository of the medicine bundle and the sacred pipe of a particular warrior society. It could have been used in a society tent like an altar, and for the specific rituals of the society, one then opened the tent to make the paintings inside visible. This would be an obvious explanation, because in our culture we have in our churches also so-called showcases on the altars that are opened at certain celebrations and reveal their inner life. The whistle and whip symbols on the front door support the theory with the society tent. Why this tarpaulin changes its original owner is explained by the fact that in most warrior society’s it is usual to renew the entire regalia after a certain period of time and you no longer have not to had use for these tarpaulins and you sell to another person.
After the probably not completely clear clarification about the intended use results in the next question of the tribal affiliation. Certain clues suggest that this is an object of the Sioux-speaking peoples from the central prairie area. On the basis of some graphics one finds enough clues that confirm this thesis and also the representation of single figures reinforces this assumption that it is an object of the Dakota or Teton-Dakota. However a fancy picture writing was widespread among all Native American artists. Their depictions were usually not what they had seen, but rather something out of memories visions or traditions. As is known, the art of drawing was not only used by the North American indigenous peoples alone for their objective presentation, but also included ideographic relationships between the individual figures. Depending on the culture level of the tribe the pictures were more or less pronounced. In connection with the pictorial representations there was a category, the so-called mnemonic records. They represented songs as well as stories from traditions in which the individual figures formed the content of stanzas and sentences. Comparably this could be compared with the ballad singers from the European middle ages. The images supported the memory of the narrator like a prompter in a theater piece. Uninitiated the images did not provide any clues as to the content and context of the individual representations let alone the extent of the stories.
What is striking about the individual drawings are the different representations of the drawings. At least two artists must have worked here at different times. The one in the simple sense was only a draftsman while the other hand was more of an artist. Frederick Weygold in his report on this subject explains that in his opinion the larger images were burned into the leather hide. Where he got the information to this statement is not known.
Usually such motifs were first pressed with a sharp object of wood or bone in the wet leather and then filled with color. This type of painting technique was found in almost all prairie trunks. The colors used for the figurative representations presumably consist of indigenous earth colors which were preserved with grease or glue water. In the simpler drawings, one must assume that they are representations made with red chalk.
3. THE TIPI COVER
3.1. Explanations to the figurative representations
The pictorial art on the tarpaulin consists of more than a hundred figurative and abstract representations. A major eye-catcher are the relatively cleanly painted large motifs such as the large feathered Calumet in the middle part of the tarpaulin, as well as the morning star and the two large sun wheels with the feather rays.
The remaining figures are rather simple in nature and show pictorial portraits of cranes, hares, eagles and other birds. Furthermore, there are other buffaloes, as well as horses with and without riders, bears, a deer, turtles, snakes, smaller predators and rodents, fish, more spring rays, celestial bodies, and symbols of the four cardinal directions, a dragonfly and sage plants. Among the red chalk drawings, a figure standing next to the right sun wheel stands out from the others. The drawing shows the "Umane" of the Dakota, which is explained in detail in the group of figures IX.
3.2. Picture group I / The great central main picture
The picture in picture group I consists of six individual figurative elements. The most striking feature is the oversized portrait of a Holy Pipe (A). There are four strikingly large wing-like figment on their pipe and are the symbol for the four directions (tate topa). On the upper part, thus on the mouthpiece of this pipe, you can see a star (B) which is most likely the morning star. Below the red pipe bowl is a black bison (C), which symbolizes the holy mother earth (maka ina). Right next to the smoking pipe are two large horned snakes (D) and a slightly smaller one (E) slightly below. To the right and left of the snakes are two large sun gears. If you now take a closer look at the individual drawings on the tarpaulin, you can see that they come from two different artists and the snakes were only added afterwards. For the large elements, the painter sketched the outlines with black paint and painted them with the remaining colors out. Like all other drawings, the snakes were painted directly with the intended color without a contour. On the pipe stem itself you can still recognize so-called> ears of corn <, which symbolize the small ears of corn on the cob. These ears of corn are sign among the Teton Dakota (Lakota) that stand for food and have an important aspect in the Huŋka ceremony (making relatives).
_Picture 1: Detail view of the big main group I.Even the previous description shows that the tipi cover is a ceremonial object. To get a better context, a short explanation of each element is an advantage. In the mythology of the prairie Indians, the smoking pipe is a fixed component part of the individual legends of many tribes. Mostly, the sacred whistle is always related to the buffalo. Among the Sioux, the sacred pipe Caŋuŋpa wakaŋ is called. She is said to have supernatural and inexhaustible powers, which is why she is also considered sacred. She always serves as a link between the powers of the universe and humanity. The first pipe flues were always offered to the four cardinal points, then to the sky, and to the sun and the earth. As a sign of the infinite, the painter used the image of the star, which he depicted in light green color. Immediately related to the whistle, the buffalo painted below embodies the earth and humanity. For many Native Americans, the bison is a sacred animal that is not just considered a food donor. Especially the white buffalo stood here at the top.
The White Buffalo legend has been known to the indigenous peoples for more than 2,000 years and has been shared on every occasion and at countless council meetings, as well passed in sacred ceremonies and by the storytellers of the tribe. There are innumerable different representations in the stories, but all statements always point to the same event in order to establish communication with the powers of the universe and the Great Spirit through prayer. The clear intention was to ask for peace, harmony and balance for all life on Mother Earth.
Among the Lakota Sioux they told the short version of the history of White Buffalo as follows:
"It was in the old days, long before the Sioux had horses, that people lost the ability to communicate with the Great Spirit (Wakaŋ Taŋka, or affectionately called Tuŋkasila Wakan Tanka, grandfather spirit) and the universe. A big famine came over the people of the Lakota and the Great Spirit sent now by the buffalo people (Pte Oyate) a white buffalo calf to the starving Sioux. They were two Itazipco Lakota scouts who were sent to hunt wild animals, and one day they encountered a mystical figure who first showed them in the figure of a white Buffalo calf and then became a beautiful woman in white leather clothed with wonderful patterns of brightly colored porcupine bristles. The extraordinary woman was Ptesan Wi, the White Buffalo Calf Woman. The White Buffalo Calf Woman brought the sacred whistle to the Lakota Caŋuŋpa Wakaŋ and taught them the right way to pray, to find the right words and gestures. She also taught the Lakota how to sing songs to fill the pipe and how one the Pipe aligns to the Great Spirit and Uŋci maka (Grandmother Earth) as well as to Tatuye topa the four cardinal directions of the Universe.”
With the bundle of the sacred pipe Ptesan Wi brought the Lakota also the seven holy ceremonies.
Wicoh'an Wakan Sakowin (Seven Holy Rites)
1. Inikagapi or Inipi (The sweat lodge to renew life)
2. Hanbleceyapi (crying for a vision, looking for a vision and name naming)
3. Wanagi Wicagluha (preservation of the mind;)
4. Wiwanyang Wacipi: The dance with the sun to pray for the well-being of all people
5. Hunkapi: (the adoption ceremony, kinship)
6. Isnati Awicalowanpi: (puberty ceremony)
7. Tapa Wankayeyapi: (throwing the ball)
When the teaching of the sacred paths was completed, White Buffalo Calf Woman told the Lakota that she would return to the sacred bundle she had given to the Lakota. Before she left, she told them about the four epochs of time and that she would look back at them in every epoch. At the end of the fourth age, she would return to restore harmony and spirituality in the land. Then she made her way and approached the setting sun. After she had gone a short distance, she looked back to the people and sat down on the ground. When she got up again, people were amazed to see that she had become a black buffalo. A little further, the buffalo lay down again, this time she was a yellow buffalo. The third time the buffalo went a little further and this time he stood up as a red buffalo. On the last piece he rolled on the floor and rose once more as a white buffalo calf, completing the fulfillment of the White Buffalo Calf Prophecy.
The change of the four colors that Ptesan Wi performed was taken over by the Lakota in the sacred medicine wheel and indicate the four cardinal directions North, West, East and South. So the color red stands for the north, black for the west, yellow for the east, and white is the south.
The sacred bundle left to the Lakota is still at a sacred site in the Indian Reservation of the Cheyenne River in South Dakota. It's kept by a man known as the guardian of the White Buffalo Calf Pipe, it's Arvol Looking Horse.
Picture 2: Detailed view of the left and right snake head.Let us return to the central pattern on our leather tarpaulin. Here, to the right and left of the great central main unit, we find two oversized snakes (D) that show differences in appearance. At first glance, there is nothing special about the animals, but on closer inspection you can see two horns on the head and a funnel-shaped mouth from which a wavy line emerges. These extraordinary characters are meant to describe the power of animals.
Among the indigenous inhabitants of the Great Plains, there were countless reptiles and underwater monsters depicted as giant horned water snakes or oversized birds. This is probably due to the fact that with the colonization of the North American continent by the Europeans and the steadily increasing number of white immigrants, the indigenous people were pushed further and further into unknown areas, and thus came into contact with fossil bones of primeval animals, this was probably In the spring after the meltdown on the banks of rivers and lakes uncovered and since one did not know such bones they had to come from another world. It could have been the water monsters bones of mastodons that looked like huge snakes with big horns. You did not know other animals that had their horns carried forward and were completely unknown even elephant-like creatures like the mammoth. Therefore, the skull was simply turned upwards and had a huge head with huge horns that emerged from the skull of a terrible creature. Since the remaining bones could not be assigned, they had to come from a giant snake. Like the monster image of a horned water monster, the so-called thunderbirds may also have originated from the finds of pterosaur skeletons.
The two snakes are apparently the water and snake monsters Uŋcegula and Uŋktehi. They were considered a symbol for the "ancestors of the rattlesnake". Uŋcegula was the female animal and Uŋktehi the male counterpart. The wavy lines coming from the mouth are sometimes referred to as lines of holiness. Such lines were used in the pictorial writings combined representations between humans and animals and inanimate objects in order to indicate the supernatural and sacred and their belonging.
According to the Sioux belief, the snake monsters Uŋcegula and Uŋktehi were sent to earth by the Great Spirit to remind people that they had broken off contact with him. Uŋktehi was therefore a powerful, supernatural, male being with horns on his head and razor-sharp teeth. He had an elongated, scaly body with four legs, a very long, strong tail and horns on his head that could protrude into the clouds. His claws were claws like iron and some also claimed that he had long hair on his head and neck. Uŋktehi preferred the environment of waters such as rivers and lakes, where he caused accidents with humans and animals and then to kill and eat them with his tail. However, it was also reported that he was not invulnerable and his heart was said to be behind the seventh spot on his body. According to tradition, he could only be killed with holy medicine arrows that hit him at this place.
“Although Uŋktehi was friendly to the birds and animals that lived on and in the water, he still had a very powerful enemy in Wakinyan that the Great Spirit sent to kill him. However, when he started killing people to feed on them, the Lakota started hunting for the monster. According to old traditions, a medicine woman is said to have chosen two twin brothers to kill the monster. The two brothers fired at the medicine arrows on Uŋktehi they received from the medicine woman and wounded him very badly and when he of it meandered, he caused great damage to the country. Eventually he died and the sun scorched his flesh and dried up the land, forming the Badlands (Mako sica) in South Dakota.”
Not only this story is still present today but also that of the family from the bear clan, which was eaten by the monster. Her leader a great brave warrior had a knife with him on the advice of the weasel spirit to cut himself and his family out of the monster's belly and thus save the family.
While originally there was no real shape for Uŋcegula it probably had fire eyes and a jagged mouth, which was covered with a smoky or cloudy mass. Over time, its shape became massive, getting a long scaly body, the natural armor of which was almost impenetrable. Her eyes burned with angry hunger and her voice raged like the rumble of thunder in the clouds. Whoever looked at her became blind or crazy and she splashed water out of her mouth and flooded the land. Sometimes came muddy and bad water should have come from her mouth with which she poisoned the water for humans and animals. According to the traditions of the Sioux Unhcegila is one of the dangerous water monsters that lived in antiquity and their arrival has been announced to the Lakota by the Blackfoot from the north. This is the story:
“When Uŋcegula came to the Lakota, she flooded the whole country with water. As the water rose and the land continued to flooded the Lakota ran to up a high hill next to what is now the Minnesota Pipestone Quarry. People climbed up there to save themselves. But it didn't help the water reached people halfway to the hill. The waves swirled around the rocks and battlements, pulling people with them. Everyone was killed and all the blood gushed together into a large lake. When the tide was over the blood turned to stone and so the Pipestone Quarry in Minnesota was created it was the grave of the people who lost their lives.”
“That is why the Lakota-Sioux pipes are made from this red stone and so sacred. The red stone embodies the flesh and blood of their ancestors and the stalk of the pipe represents the backbone of those people who have long been dead, and the smoke that rises from the pipe is their breath. The devastation that Uŋcegula caused angered Wakinyan so much that his wings flapped so violently and triggered a great storm that dried up the land and he then killed Uŋcegula with his flashes. Her heart was killed and her bones scattered in the Badlands (Mako sica) of South Dakota.”
According to information from the Lakota, it is said to have formed a high rock formation from its spine here. The swirls of the monster snake protrude here in a long row of red and yellow stones. According to the knowledge from the mythology of the Lakota about the water snakes and monsters, one could even make an assignment of the two large horned snakes. So the left snake would represent Uŋktehi and the right snake would be Uŋcegula.
In the lower area of the left great snake there is also a much smaller horned rattlesnake (E), the drawing of which is only vaguely and incompletely recognizable on the tarpaulin. The contours of this animal are shown in yellow color. On the outlines, there are feet and fins and are just as yellow as the body. This drawing was probably and intentionally painted incompletely and is supposed to emulate the original shape of the large water monster. It is said to have been a rattlesnake in its original form, which lived in rivers and on the shores of the lake. It brought death and destruction to those who, according to the Dakota-Sioux and probably some other tribes, were exposed to it. This may have been the reason why the artist depicted them in an unfinished and dismembered state.
If you take a closer look at the two sun gears you can see a different number of sun rays, the left wheel has twenty-three and the right wheel has thirty-two. However, the two green shields on which the feather rays are located have an almost identical diameter and do not contribute to the fact that there is an differently number of rays. In my opinion, the amount of rays in the two sun gears also has no spiritual or mystical background. One of the most obvious explanations for this is that the artist used different widths to create the diamonds and that this resulted in an uneven amount of rhombuses. The green base color of the shields means that they are closely related to the morning star symbol (B) and the large calumet. The red center point in the shield is the simple graphic representation of a sun.
_Picture 3: Illustration of the two sun wheels / sun shields.Earlier reports by the then explorer George Catlin and Prince Maximilian zu Wied indicate that the Indians have presented the rays of the sun in such portraits by depicting feathers of the golden eagle (Golden Eagle). This way of thinking seems to be similar to what one used in the feather hoods of the chiefs and called them sun hoods. Thus, the head of the wearer was surrounded by a halo. This also explains the zigzag and rectangle motifs found on the headbands of the hoods. They almost always had the same ornaments and thus form a connection to the sun's rays. The hooks or lines on the tips show small tufts of human hair and are comparable to those that are also on the spring hoods.
3.3. Picture group II / Picture on the left smoke flap
The picture group II start in the upper area of the left smoke flap, where there are on the outside of the pockets for the tent poles that raise the smoke flaps up. Here we see a single larger spring element (1) and a little further down two other smaller springs which are arranged parallel to the edge of the smoke flap. They are in turn synonymous with the sunbeams that are sent to earth and thus represent a sacred appreciation. This is underpinned by the color combination red and green. The color red in this drawing meant the sacred and green stands for the earth.
Picture 4: Detail picture on the elements of the left upper smoke flap.Two plant forms can also be seen. The first are Sage (2) and a cedar branches (3). These two plants were considered sacred plants in almost all tribes of the prairie room. Cedar branches were often placed in the upper part of the medicine huts to keep away the bad. The Sage is seen as a purifying power. In the figure (4) shows a thunder bird which is shown with green of holiness line on the body. While figure (5) symbolizes a red mystical mammal. Under (6) an undefinable shape is sketched.
3.4. Picture group III / Group of animals around the morning star
The picture group IV is at the upper part of the big pipe, where the morning star is. The group consists of the pair of cranes (1) with the snakes in their beaks, then a thunder bird (2) and two red rabbits (3). The pair of cranes were arranged to enclose the morning star from group I which is located at the mouthpiece of the sacred pipe.
_Picture 5: Detail view of the picture group IV with cranes, snakes, rabbits and Thunderbird.The two rabbits seem to be extraordinary, but the rabbit's medicine is about moving through fear and acting according to one's own mind. The rabbit also reminds us not to be afraid. Anxious thoughts multiply very quickly and do exactly what we are most afraid of. Furthermore, the rabbit teaches us to be humble and to reevaluate our fears at any time and to free ourselves from negative feelings and obstacles.
3.5. Picture group IV / Middle left input side
The picture group V is located on the left side of the tarpaulin next to the holes for the front wooden pins to lock the tent. Figure (1) shows a bear and slightly below it you can see a yellow wapiti deer (2). These figures probably also include the thunder bird (3) which was probably drawn in connection with the human couple (4). The human couple of people stands for sexual coexistence and reproduction between men and women. This could well be closely related and in a spiritual relationship with the other three animal images, in order to ensure the survival of the tribe.
Picture 6: Detail view of the picture group IV with Bear, wapiti deer, thunderbird and human coupleIt is important to know that the bear is always associated with the dreams of Wakaŋ taŋka the Great Spirit. This is due to the fact that the bear hibernating and thus gets a look back on the past. The Bear Cave stands as a symbol of going back to the body of Mother Earth. Someone who owns bear medicine is considered self-employed and prefers to stand on his own two feet. Often, these people are also considered as dreamers who have the ability to present new things vividly. They often get too caught up in their dreams, so that after awakening only a modest success was achieved. The typical teaching of bear medicine includes solitude, introspection, and communication with the Great Spirit, death, and rebirth.
Unlike the bear, the deer (hehaka) adapts to its environment and is very sensitive to the sounds and movements in its environment. Hirsch people are therefore often referred to as fast and attentive. They make many of their decisions out of their guts and tend to supernatural perceptions and their thoughts always seem to run ahead. Thus, the spirit of the deer also conveys the teaching of sacrificing oneself for the higher good, developing a sense of what is necessary for survival. Furthermore, to find the gentleness of spirit of the mind that heals all wounds and quit harassing and changing others. In the old days, the Hehaka people were used as medics in battles and wars, they were a little way from combat on a hill. In order to be well visible to all, they wore feather bonnets and were used, for example, when it was necessary to quickly rescue one or several wounded from the battlefield. They use a bison's skin to which they attached a lasso, she ride on the battlefield and brought the injured on the buffalo hide out of the danger zone to safety.
3.6. Picture group V / Left, lower half of the tent
Group V starts on the left side of the tent, next to the entrance. The figure (1) is a red rider with a red horse and is located below the human couple from picture group IV. A little above next to the left sun wheel is lining drawing (2) a green thunder bird and above it with picture (3) a green turtle.
Picture 7: Detailed pictures of the individual rider and horse pictures in group V.At the bottom of the tent, it continue with the figure (4), which shows a red rider who is probably a member of a warrior society. He is holding a curved eagle stick and has probably tied a stuffed bird tied in his hair. The curved eagle stick represents the umbilical cord between humans (the Tiyospaye) and mother earth (Unci maka) and belong to the Akicita societies. You cannot tell which warrior society was represented here. Above the rider are two green stars (5), which probably embody an earth symbol.
It continues with the next rider picture (6), a red rider on a yellow horse, wearing an eagle feather headdress. Not far from there along the edge of the tent is a portrait of a black horse (7) and above it a larger green turtle (8) with a pattern on the back. Figure (9) and (10) are two other horses, drawn with a red color on the one hand and drawn as a green horse on the other. Near the big smoking pipe with the number (11) is a somewhat mystical rider with a horse painted green and red, he holds his war shield in his right hand and this has the same colour as his horse. Finally, you can see a green rider (12) with a green horse underneath.
The equestrian images depicted on the tent and other individual representations can only be sparsely recognized. The remaining figures were probably damaged by the heavy stress on the tarpaulin.
3.7. Picture group VI / Below the right sun wheel
Image group VI is located below the right sun gear. In this group, the painter also chose the combination of animal and human representations. The first picture is a green thunderbird, which is located between the right large snake and the sun gear. Directly underneath, the following two pictures (2 & 3) show a green and a yellow horse. In picture (5) there follows a second green horse with a warrior (4) holding a lance in his hand. What is striking about the horseman is a cape that he wears around his shoulder and wave backwards. In Amos Bad Heart Bull's drawings in the book “Pictographic History of the Oglala Sioux”, individual riders with different cloaks are often shown during parades and are believed to be the identification mark of a war leader (blotohunka).
Picture 8 Details of group VI with human and animal representations.Further animal representations now follow, beginning with a crane, a turtle, a fish and a bear (Figure 5-8). Fig. (8) shows a bear that apparently has a mystical reference. The Iron grizzly bear (in blue-green color) had magical powers, especially with those tribal groups who were unfamiliar with the processing of metal. Figure (9) is again a horseman in yellow and dressed with a feather hood or a turban on his head and also with a cape. Number (10) forms the conclusion and reveals another rider figure.
All of these figurative equestrian portraits could be mnemonic recordings of songs, each character expressing the content of a complete song or verse. The arrangement of all the drawings also suggests a certain scheme, which is in order from top to bottom and thus embodies heaven and earth and water.
********ThE END OF PART One*********
