DATE: ca. 1860s
CREATOR: Little Shield, Arapaho Chief
SCOPE: This series of sketches, a visual autobiography of "Little Shield, Chief of the Arrapohas," shows his exploits of valor and historical enemies in pictographic form. Little Shield's figure is riding a horse into battle in each sketch.
EXTENT: Large unbound volume of 23 pencil sketches, colored on lined tablet paper, mounted for exhibition. 14pp.
HISTORY: One of the earliest extant examples of Great Plains Indigenous ledger art, this series of sketches was created by Little Shield, an Arapaho Chief who recorded his own exploits in a pictorial journal sometime in the 1860s.
PROVENANCE: The ledger was donated to the Mercantile Library in 1890
ACCESS: This is collection M-058. This collection is available for on-site use only in the Rare Book and Manuscripts Reading Room. Some of the collection may be photocopied, digitally scanned or photographed, depending on condition. Researchers are advised to call ahead concerning changes in hours due to University intersessions and holidays. The St. Louis Mercantile Library is located on levels one and two of the Thomas Jefferson Library building. More information about conducting research with the archival collections of the Library, including current building hours and reading room policies, can be found on our Research page.
RESTRICTIONS: None
Preferred Citation note: The preferred citation for this collection is “From the Special Collections of the St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri – St. Louis.”
INVENTORY
This collection has been digitized and is available to view on the UMSL Digital Library.
