Shield with Supernatural Being
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.The protective power of this shield, made of muslin stretched over a wood hoop, resides in the painted image of a supernatural being and in the cluster of feathers from various birds associated with the spirit world. On the upper half is a mysterious, visionary creature with the head and claws of an eagle and the body of a lizard. A group of dots below represents both hail—the power to destroy—and the bullets the shield will turn away.
Artwork Details
- Title: Shield with Supernatural Being
- Date: ca. 1890
- Geography: United States, Wyoming or North or South Dakota
- Culture: Cheyenne or Lakota (Teton Sioux)
- Medium: Wood (probably willow), muslin, pigment, ink, wool cloth, cotton string, turkey, hawk, owl and eagle feathers
- Dimensions: Diameter: 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm)
- Classifications: Wood-Implements, Textiles-Painted
- Credit Line: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia (NA11706)
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing