Lot 72
LAKOTA SIOUX HEADDRESS
GREAT PLAINS, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, C. 19TH CENTURY
Auction: 28 May 2026 from 13:00 BST
Description
felt, cotton, red fabric, seed beads of various hues, feathers, bison hide, leather, horsehair, satin ribbon
Dimensions
43.4cm tall
Provenance
Private collection, Germany, acquired c. 1980
Binoche Renaud Giquello, Art Asiatique – Art Primitif – Art des Indiens d’Amérique, lot 292, 6 December 2013
Craig Finch, London
Private collection, London, acquired from the above
Footnote
This striking warrior headdress is crafted from a felt cap lined with cotton and edged with finely beaded bison leather. Golden eagle feathers, wrapped in red fabric, radiate from the cap to form a broad, majestic crown. A single “spirit feather” at the centre top, mounted on a leather disk. Satin ribbons and falcon feathers adorn either side of the headdress.
The arrangement of the feathers served as a visual identifier of tribal affiliation, with the present style characteristic of the Sioux, Crow, and Cheyenne. The headdress demonstrates meticulous “reserve” beadwork, where portions of the surface are intentionally left unworked to create design contrast.