Brooklyn Museum Collection

This otter skin cap tail would generally be worn around the neck or attached to a choker. It has a side edge of loom beadwork in white with red and blue designs. The blue cloth heart on the top edge is edged in white and red and is beaded on the reverse side. The support material which is hidden by the fur is covered with reverse appliqué ribbon work which conceals the fur fold and seams.

Brooklyn Museum Collection

Brooklyn Museum Collection

Central Plains. This club would be carried in dances as a something that gave status and position to a man for instance the Buffalo Dance Society. Should not have any restrictions as these were individual ownership.

Brooklyn Museum Collection

Brooklyn Museum Collection

Brooklyn Museum Collection

The object is a miniature teepee cover. On a natural background there are painted designs in brown, pink, black and grey. They represent a battle scene (possibly a horse raid) and include two mounted Indians, two leading horses, and two fallen warriors. Also shown are four warriors with rifles, hoof prints of horses, and, near the top, three stylized feather designs. Good example of miniature tipi even though not made quite correctly-too upright. Design: hoof prints indicate movement. The person hurt and lying down might be Pawnee or Osage based on the hairstyle and might have been done in by the one with the rifle. One is wearing military pants. The horses tails are tied and decorated and must be favorite warhorses as their manes are also tied. Can't tell who or what the person with the lines on his face is. Dots might indicate a person who had small pox.

This hammer has a catlinite hammer with a wooden handle covered with rawhide sewn over and around the center of the hammer. The red catlinite is tapered on each end and has three grooves around it on each end either side of the wood and hide holding it on. This might have had a decorative horsetail hanging from it. Such clubs were used in dances before a hunt and had symbolic and ceremonial function not a war function. Members of a society carried these as badges of honor and emblems of office.