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Horned Headdress

ca. 1780
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Two artists, a male and a female, combined materials from the natural world with trade beads, cotton cloth, and silk ribbon to create this elaborate construction. Horned headdresses are associated with sacred power. They originated in the Great Lakes and spread to the Plains. Worn by a warrior as part of his regalia, this example is one of the oldest of its kind.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Horned Headdress
  • Date: ca. 1780
  • Geography: United States, Eastern Plains, Lower Missouri River region
  • Culture: Eastern Plains, Lower Missouri region
  • Medium: Split bison horns, sinew, deer hair, horsehair, porcupine quills, glass beads, wood, metal cones, cotton cloth, rawhide, birch back(?), silk ribbon, pigment
  • Dimensions: Length: 12 in. (30.5 cm)
    Width: 10 7/8 in. (27.6 cm)
    Height: 16 1/2 in. (41.9 cm)
  • Classification: Miscellaneous
  • Credit Line: Musée du quai Branly, Paris (71.1934.33.32 D)
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing