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National Anthropological Archives
Guide to MS 2367-a Red Horse pictographic account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, 1881
Summary
- Collection ID:
- NAA.MS2367A
- Creators:
-
Red HorseMcChesney, Charles E.
- Dates:
-
1881
- Languages:
-
English.
- Physical Description:
-
42 Drawings (visual works)graphite, colored pencil, and ink; laminated24 x 36.25 inches
- Repository:
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of forty-two (42) drawings made by Red Horse at the request of Dr. Charles E. McChesney. The drawings served as illustrations to accompany Red Horse's account of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, which McChesney recorded in support of Garrick Mallery's study of Plains sign language. The drawings are numbered 0-41 (Number 27 is now missing). The collection also includes a one-page note about the drawings by McChesney and a newspaper article about the collection.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Biographical Note
Biographical Note
Red Horse was a chief of the Miniconjou division of the Lakota. He fought in the 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn, and in 1881 he gave one of the few detailed accountings of the event.
Biographical Note
Dr. Charles E. McChesney was an Army physician based at Fort Bennet, Dakota Territory in 1881.
Administration
Custodial History
They drawings were made at the Cheyenne River Agency in 1881 and subsequently deposited in the Bureau of [American] Ethnology by Charles E. McChesney. Correspondence regarding their production is located in the Records of the Bureau of American Ethnology Correspondence series.
Digital Content
More …Using the Collection
Preferred Citation
MS 2367-a Red Horse pictographic account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Conditions Governing Use
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Related Materials
Related Materials
The National Anthropological Archives also holds:
MS 2367-b Red Horse's Account of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, Montana, June 25, 1876, in Gesture-Signs, to illustrate the Syntax of the Sign-Language of the North American Indians.
More Information
Local Numbers
Local Numbers
NAA MS 2367-a
OPPS NEG 46999 A-K
OPPS NEG 47000 A-L
OPPS NEG 47001 A-K
OPPS NEG 72-3915 CN-72-3955 CN
Publication Note
Publication Note
Map and Numbers 5, 8, 12, 16, 27 (now missing), 30, 32, 39, and 41 were published in:
Mallery, Garrick. "Picture Writing of the American Indians," Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology 10. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1893. Plates 39-48.
Keywords
| Keyword Terms | Keyword Types | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Works of art | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Ledger drawings | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Pictographs | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Maps | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Minneconjou Lakota (Minniconjou Sioux) | Cultural Context | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Little Big Horn, Battle of the, Mont., 1876 | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Montana | Geographic | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| North America | Geographic | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
National Anthropological Archives
Museum Support Center
4210 Silver Hill Road
Suitland, Maryland 20746
Business Number: Phone: 301.238.1300
Fax Number: Fax: 301.238.2883
naa@si.edu
