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Inlaid Pipe Bowl with Two Faces

Arts of the Americas

The Jarvis Collection of Native American Plains Art

The articles in this case and the adjacent clothing case are some of the earliest and finest Eastern Plains pieces in existence. They were collected by Dr. Nathan Sturges Jarvis, a military surgeon stationed at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, between 1833 and 1836. He purchased some of the objects, while some may have been given in exchange for his medical services. These works display indigenous people’s ingenuity in combining trade materials such as cloth, metal, and glass beads with traditional hides, red pipestone, and porcupine and bird quills.
CULTURE Sisseton, Sioux
MEDIUM Catlinite (pipestone), lead
DATES early 19th century
DIMENSIONS 3 x 5 x 3 in. (7.6 x 12.7 x 7.6 cm)  (show scale)
INSCRIPTIONS "Ornamented War Chief's Pipe (Sisseton Sioux)"
COLLECTIONS Arts of the Americas
ACCESSION NUMBER 50.67.104
CREDIT LINE Henry L. Batterman Fund and the Frank Sherman Benson Fund
PROVENANCE Prior to 1848, provenance not yet documented; by 1848, acquired by Nathan Sturges Jarvis; 1848, gift of Nathan Sturges Jarvis to the New-York Historical Society, New York, NY; 1937, loaned by the New-York Historical Society to the Brooklyn Museum; 1950, purchased from the New-York Historical Society by the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Red catlinite pipe. The bowl is carved with two human faces; one placed facing the smoker and the other at the back of the bowl. Bands of lead are inlaid around the bowl and the short section meant to connect to the stem. There are remnants of where another figure was attached to the topside of the short stem.
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION Sisseton, Sioux. Inlaid Pipe Bowl with Two Faces, early 19th century. Catlinite (pipestone), lead, 3 x 5 x 3 in. (7.6 x 12.7 x 7.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Henry L. Batterman Fund and the Frank Sherman Benson Fund, 50.67.104. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 50.67.104_profile_PS9.jpg)
IMAGE profile, 50.67.104_profile_PS9.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2013
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RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
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Sisseton, Sioux. <em>Inlaid Pipe Bowl with Two Faces</em>, early 19th century. Catlinite (pipestone), lead, 3 x 5 x 3 in. (7.6 x 12.7 x 7.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Henry L. Batterman Fund and the Frank Sherman Benson Fund, 50.67.104. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 50.67.104_profile_PS9.jpg)