- More
NORTHERN BLACKFEET CEREMONIAL ALTAR, BIG BELLY, STUMP, and EAGLE NOSE. c. 1912... (Total: 4 Items)
Click the image to load the highest resolution version.Description
NORTHERN BLACKFEET CEREMONIAL ALTAR, BIG BELLY, STUMP, and EAGLE NOSEc. 1912 Northern Blackfeet (Siksika) Ceremonial Altar, by Harry Pollard, Calgary, Alberta, c.1912. Photographer's blind-stamp at lower right. Pencil inscription, verso: "Medicine Dance." Silver-gelatin print.
This depicts the opening of a family religious bundle during the days of the Sun Dance encampment. Four men and a woman are seen within a classic Blackfeet tipi, with an artistically-painted inner liner. A painted circular drum and a parfleche case hang from the sticks of a tripod leaning against the rear wall. Note the head of a sleeping child in the woman's lap. The contents of the sacred bundle are exposed on a folded blanket at center. Just in front, the crossed sticks are a support for the stems of smoking pipes to be displayed later, after the photographer departs. In the mid-foreground is a square, painted altar made of pulverized earth, the surface divided into halves representing the duality of the universe and sprinkled with crushed charcoal and either red-ocher or vermillion. These paints are contained in the leather bags seen at left center, with a braid of sweetgrass to be burned as incense. The lighted coals to accomplish this will be brought inside from an exterior fire, using the wooden tongs seen lying to the right of the altar.
Dimensions: image 9 ½ x 7 ½ inches
Big Belly, Sarcee Head Chief, by Harry Pollard, Calgary, Alberta, c. 1912. Photographer's blind-stamp at lower right. Silver-gelatin print.
The Sarcee, a small Alberta tribe, were closely allied with the Northern Blackfeet. Big Belly wears the formal, black-wool coat fashionable with Canadian Indian leaders of the period, accented with floral-beaded cuffs made by his wife Maggie. He holds a pipe with black-stone bowl and round stem of ashwood. The medals pinned to his coat indicate his status as a signatory of Canadian treaties on behalf of his tribe. After his death, about 1920, Maggie Big Eagle married the photographer Arnold Lupson.
Dimensions: image 7 ½ x 9 ½ inches
Stump, Northern Blackfeet (Siksika), by Harry Pollard, Calgary, Alberta, c. 1912. Photographer's blind-stamp at lower right. Silver-gelatin print.
In this simple, formal portrait, Stump wears small earrings of conch shell and the formal coat of a Blackfeet leader.
Dimensions: image 7 ½ x 9 ½ inches
Eagle Nose, Blackfeet (Kainah, or Blood), by Harry Pollard, Calgary, Alberta, c. 1912. Photographer's blind-stamp at lower right. Silver-gelatin print.
His profile clearly indicates the origin of his name. Narrow braids are decorated with a silver concho and a "spring" of brass wire that had been tightly wrapped around a stick.
Dimensions: image 7 ½ x 9 ½ inches
Auction Info
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
19.5% of the successful bid (minimum $14) per lot.
Calculate Custom Domestic Shipping Sales Tax information
Terms and Conditions | Bidding Guidelines and Bid Increments | Glossary of Terms
US Coins
Opens about 12/20/2019
Currency
Opens about 12/20/2019
Decorative Art
Opens about 12/19/2019
Comics & Comic Art
Opens about 12/11/2019
World & Ancient Coins
Opens about 12/17/2019
US Coins
Opens about 12/16/2019
Sports Collectibles
Opens about 12/23/2019
World & Ancient Coins
Opens about 12/26/2019
Fine Art
Opens about 12/31/2019
Jewelry & Timepieces
Opens about 12/26/2019
World & Ancient Coins
Opens about 12/30/2019
Sports Collectibles
Opens about 01/08/2020
Jewelry & Timepieces
Opens about 01/24/2020
World & Ancient Coins
Opens about 01/05/2020
Heritage membership
- Past Auction Values (prices, photos, full descriptions, etc.)
- Bid online
- Free Collector newsletter
- Want List with instant e-mail notifications
- Reduced auction commissions when you resell your
winnings
- Cash Advances
- More Bidders
- Trusted Experts
- Over 200,000 Satisfied Consignors Since 1976
Learn about consigning with us
In my estimation Taylor exemplified professionalism and in that respect clearly added value to Heritage Auctions as their representative.View More Testimonials
HA.com receives more traffic than any other auction house website. (Source: Similarweb.com)