ORThe Open Room
Digital gallery
Back to the NGA collection
The image shows three individuals standing in full-length. The person on the left is holding a staff and wearing a feathered headdress and a robe with intricate designs. The central figure wears a robe fastened with a fur shawl, has a red mohawk hairstyle and holds a staff. The person on the right stands with a shield and a cylindrical object on their back. They all stand on a grassy patch with a light background, framed by a narrow pale green border.
Read the visual description

The image shows three individuals standing in full-length. The person on the left is holding a staff and wearing a feathered headdress and a robe with intricate designs. The central figure wears a robe fastened with a fur shawl, has a red mohawk hairstyle and holds a staff. The person on the right stands with a shield and a cylindrical object on their back. They all stand on a grassy patch with a light background, framed by a narrow pale green border.

National Gallery of Art · Painting

A Pawnee Chief with Two Warriors

George Catlin

Date
1861/1869
Medium
oil on card mounted on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 50 x 61.8 cm (19 11/16 x 24 5/16 in.)
Classification
Painting
Accession number
1965.16.61
Credit line
Paul Mellon Collection
Time span
1851 to 1875
Department
CAB
Original NGA record Wikidata

Subjects and terms

  • painted surface
  • American
  • American Paintings, Catlin
  • North American Indian
  • portrait
  • Pawnee
  • Lee-shaw-loo-la-le-hoo (The Big Elk), second chief
  • L'har-re-tar-rusche (The Ill-natured Man), warrior
  • Lo-lock-to-hoo-la (The Big Chief), warrior
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.

Inscription

lower center: Catlin p.

NGA object ID 50369. 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.