There are three figures depicted in the image. The figure on the left is a male standing upright, holding a rifle with one hand. His facial features show prominent cheekbones and a slightly open mouth. He wears a headdress with feathers, dark hair, a necklace, arm bands, and a fringed garment around his waist. The middle figure, with their back to the viewer, is wrapped in a fur clothing piece and appears to wear a feathered headdress. The figure on the right is a female with long dark hair, wearing a pink shawl over a light dress with patterns. She carries an infant on her back in a woven basket. The background shows a simple landscape with grassy terrain, a light blue sky with clouds, enclosed in an oval frame bordered further.
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There are three figures depicted in the image. The figure on the left is a male standing upright, holding a rifle with one hand. His facial features show prominent cheekbones and a slightly open mouth. He wears a headdress with feathers, dark hair, a necklace, arm bands, and a fringed garment around his waist. The middle figure, with their back to the viewer, is wrapped in a fur clothing piece and appears to wear a feathered headdress. The figure on the right is a female with long dark hair, wearing a pink shawl over a light dress with patterns. She carries an infant on her back in a woven basket. The background shows a simple landscape with grassy terrain, a light blue sky with clouds, enclosed in an oval frame bordered further.

National Gallery of Art · Painting

Arapaho Chief, His Wife, and a Warrior

George Catlin

Date
1861/1869
Medium
oil on card mounted on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 47.2 x 62.9 cm (18 9/16 x 24 3/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Accession number
1965.16.30
Credit line
Paul Mellon Collection
Time span
1851 to 1875
Department
CAB

Subjects and terms

  • painted surface
  • American
  • American Paintings, Catlin
  • North American Indian
  • portrait
  • Arapaho
  • Ha-nis-krah (He sees through the fog), chief
  • Hoo, wife of the chief
  • Too-jen-ux-ta (The Great Jumper), warrior, hunter
Provenance

George Catlin [1796-1872]; by descent to his daughters, Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin; purchased 1912 from Elizabeth Wing Catlin by the American Museum of Natural History; sold 1959 through (Kennedy Galleries, New York) to Mr. Paul Mellon, Upperville, VA; gift 1965 to the NGA.

NGA object ID 50338. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.