The Elkhorn Pyramid on the Upper Missouri

BODMER, Karl (1809-1893)

Verlag: Paris, Coblenz and London, 1842

Beschreibung

Aquatint engraving by A. Fournier after Bodmer, proof on india paper mounted, blindstamp. A rare India proof. In July 1833, between Forts Union and McKenzie, the keelboat Flora stopped to allow Maximilian and his party to examine a remarkable cairn of elk antlers on the prairie, just inland from the Missouri River. The ground in all directions was littered with the antlers cast during the bulls' annual shedding. Each Blackfoot hunting party had collected antlers as they passed, adding them to the growing pile, and sometimes marking them with red paint to indicate the number in the party. Intended as a charm to ensure a successful hunt, by the time it was sketched by Bodmer it was over fifteen feet high and contained over a thousand antlers. Karl Bodmer's images show great versatility and technical virtuosity and give us a uniquely accomplished and detailed picture of a previously little understood (and soon to vanish) way of life. Swiss-born Bodmer was engaged by Prince Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied (1782-1867) specifically to provide a record of his travels in North America, principally among the Plains Indians. In the company of David Dreidoppel (Prince Maximilian's servant and hunting companion), their travels in North America were to last from 1832 to 1834. Well-armed with information and advice, the party finally left St.Louis, on the most important stage of their travels, aboard the steamer Yellow Stone on April 10 1833. They proceeded up the treacherous Missouri River along the line of forts established by the American Fur Company. At Bellevue they encountered their first Indians, then went on to make contact with the Sioux tribe, learning of and recording their little known ceremonial dances and powerful pride and dignity. Transferring from the Yellow Stone to another steamer, the Assiniboin, they continued to Fort Clark, visiting there the Mandan, Mintari and Crow tribes, then the Assiniboins at Fort Union, the main base of the American Fur Company. On a necessarily much smaller vessel they journeyed through the extraordinary geological scenery of that section of the Missouri to Fort Mackenzie in Montana, establishing a cautious friendship with the fearsome Blackfeet. From this, the westernmost point reached, it was considered too dangerous to continue and the return journey downstream began. The winter brought its own difficulties and discomforts, but Bodmer was still able to execute numerous studies of villages, dances and especially the people, who were often both intrigued and delighted by his work. The portraits are particularly notable for their capturing of individual personalities, as well as forming a primary account of what were to become virtually lost cultures. Graff 4648; Howes M443a; Pilling 2521; Sabin 47014; Wagner-Camp 76:1. Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 15642

Bibliografische Details

Titel: The Elkhorn Pyramid on the Upper Missouri

Verlag: Paris, Coblenz and London

Erscheinungsdatum: 1842

Einband: Softcover