Amiskquew, The Spoon

Artist Charles Bird King (American, 1785 - 1862)

Datec. 1831

Mediumoil on wood

Dimensions17 3/8 x 13 5/8 inches (44.1 x 34.6 cm)

Credit LinePurchase of the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation, 1982

Object number31.212.4

ClassificationsPaintings

Label TextAmiskquew visited Washington, D.C. in 1830-1831 as a delegation member from the Menominee tribe. Thomas L. McKenney, the first head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, commissioned portraits of Indian leaders for an archive for the government. Charles Bird King painted Amiskquew’s portrait for the Indian Gallery assembled by McKenney. King then painted a replica (this painting) for himself. The government’s Indian Gallery perished in a fire in the Smithsonian in 1865, leaving King’s replicas as rare examples of his work.

ProvenanceCharles Bird King [1785-1862]; bequeathed before 1859 to Redwood Library and Athenaeum, Newport, Rhode Island; sold May 21, 1970 (Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., New York ); purchased through (Kennedy Galleries, New York) by The Warner Collection, Gulf States Paper Corporation, Tuscaloosa, Alabama owned until 1982; purchased December 1, 1982 through (Gerald Peters, Santa Fe, New Mexico) by the Nelda C. and H.J Lutcher Stark Foundation; accessioned to the Stark Museum of Art

On View

On view