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Táh-zee-keh-dá-cha, Torn Belly, a Distinguished Brave

Object Details

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“I am now in the heart of the country belonging to the numerous tribe of Sioux or Dahcotas, and have Indian faces and Indian customs in abundance around me. This tribe is one of the most numerous in North America, and also one of the most vigorous and warlike tribes to be found, numbering some forty or fifty thousand, and able undoubtedly to muster, if the tribe could be moved simultaneously, at least eight or ten thousand warriors, well mounted and well armed. This tribe take vast numbers of the wild horses on the plains towards the Rocky Mountains, and many of them have been supplied with guns; but the greater part of them hunt with their bows and arrows and long lances, killing their game from their horses' backs while at full speed.” George Catlin painted Táh-zee-keh-dá-cha at Fort Pierre in 1832. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 26, 1841; reprint 1973)
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Artist
George Catlin, born Wilkes-Barre, PA 1796-died Jersey City, NJ 1872
Sitter
Torn Belly
Date
1832
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm)
Type
Painting
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
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