Portrait of Chief Crazy Horse
The Strange Man of the Oglala
I thought of things that had happened the last days, seasons and summers. I began to see that all things were strung together like beads of a necklace, one after another, from this day back and this day forward they went on forever; the hunt, the warpath, the teaching by Hump and my father and the wounding of Conquering Bear.
I thought of other beads: The songs of my mother as we laughed together when I was a child, the songs I sang to Little Mouse as I brushed away the mosquitoes and gnats from her face as she lay in her cradleboard. And how I told her stories until she fell to sleep. I saw the face of Little Mouse as she is now, with her long eyelashes flicking up and down over her smiling, bright black eyes. It was as if I had returned to mother earth from another world and she wanted to hold me to her bosom and whisper in my ear.
-Crazy Horse-
THE CRAZY HORSE TINTYPE
"There was never a photograph taken or a likeness made from first hand witness of Crazy Horse"; so said Mari Sandoz in the biography, Crazy Horse the Strange Man of the Oglala.
Her book was published in 1942. At the time there was little reason to doubt her words. From eyewitness descriptions we know that Crazy Horse was five feet eight inches tall, lithe and sinewy, with a lean face and thin, sharp nose. His countenance was of quiet dignity, but morose, dogged, tenacious and melancholy. It was said that he always wore a white buckskin shirt and dark blue leggings, with two feathers hanging loose in his hair and his long braids were wrapped in beaver fur almost the color of his hair.
He was known throughout his life as "the light-skinned warrior." In his youth he was called "Curly" for his light, loose hair, the "color of a young prairie chick." In The Killing of Chief Crazy Horse (1976, A.H. Clark Co. of Glendale California) is a reproduction of an alleged portrait of Crazy Horse. The book was a collaborative effort of Robert A. Clark, of Spokane, Washington and Carroll Friswold. The portrait was first published by J.W. Vaughn in With Crook at the Rosebud, (Stackpole, 1956).
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The image shown here was taken directly from the tintype, which was scanned at high resolution, and retouched to remove chips and scratches without changing content, by Scott Burgan of Sheridan, Wyoming.
LOOKING AT THE TINTYPE
Tintypes are positive prints and are laterally reversed when viewed directly (as one sees oneself in a mirror). In the linked enlargement the image has been laterally flipped to present it in the more familiar orientation.Reproduction or redistribution prohibited. No portion of this site may be copied, retransmitted, reposted, duplicated, or otherwise used without the express approval of the author.
The Face Wound
There are those that claim this tintype is not of Crazy Horse on the basis that there is no obvious scar on the face of the subject. It is known that No Water shot Crazy Horse in the face because his wife, Black Buffalo Robe Woman, rode off with Crazy Horse.
Far too much has been made of this scar on the assumption that it disfigured the face of Crazy Horse. This is not a valid argument. In a letter to Will G. Robinson (Secretary of the South Dakota State Historical Society) on October 19, 1947; Mari Sandoz, in response his inquiry, stated that the revolver used by No Water to shoot Crazy Horse was a small caliber that could be hidden in the palm of the hand. He borrowed it from Bad Heart Bull and, unbeknownst to No Water, the powder charge was about a half load, to save precious gunpowder. It had been loaded to hunt rabbits and other small animals. The bullet made a small wound near the left nostril, traveled along the upper jawbone above the roots of the teeth and exited out the cheek.
In time this left a slight ridge and, according to eye witnesses, "...giving that side of Crazy Horse's face a slightly haughty cast---striking, considering the mildness and gentleness of his face." Here we need to inspect the picture carefully. Consideration should be given to the age of the wound. (The picture was taken in 1877, over ten years after the shooting.) In the picture it can be seen that the left cheek is more distinct than the right with the skin whitened from an old scar from below the left nostril to the corner of the mouth. It can best be described that his face has "a slightly haughty cast," as stated in Sandoz's letter.
Noteworthy Considerations
A Pose of Peace: Photographs of Indians of the time show them in full battle dress, wearing a fierce look and holding their favorite weapon, a rifle, axe or knife. Not so in this picture, the subject is uniquely without a weapon of any sort and is holding a peace pipe and its tamp with a clutch of Red Willow branches in his left hand. To the Lakota the left hand holds spiritual values since it is closest to the heart. (When greeting a good friend they shake with the left hand.) The Lakota used the bark of the Red Willow (not tobacco) in the ceremonial smoke of a peace council.
A Chief's Blanket: He is holding a blanket over his left arm that is carefully draped for maximum presentation, the border resting on the floor. At the time of his surrender Crazy Horse's most prized possession was a red blanket, a chief's blanket. In agreeing to have his picture taken he would make sure that his blanket would be properly presented in the photograph. Mari Sandoz stated that Crazy Horse carried his red blanket folded over his arm as he walked (unwittingly) to the guardhouse, where he was bayoneted by Private Gentles.
Earrings: are common among the Lakota and each person had their own style, but most consisted of open rings or long chains, the person in the picture has short, shell earrings, consistent with those known to be worn by Crazy Horse as an outgrowth of his vision.
PROVENANCE
Little Bat was a good and trusted friend of Crazy Horse. It appears that Little Bat persuaded Crazy Horse to have his picture taken with the assurance that it would be kept secret while Crazy Horse still lived. Crazy Horse wasn't afraid of the "shadow catcher," as stated by many writers. He was fully aware of how cameras worked; he just didn't want his picture shown about. He had a lot of enemies, Indian and White, and anonymity was his best protection.
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