OBJECT history 144 ber 10, D’après la peinture d’un guerrier sioux (From a Painting by a Sioux Warrior) (fig. 6), which mentions the artist’s process, and number 63, which is an enlarged detail of the same subject (fig. 7), both represent a Sioux painted robe and served as the basis for the aforementioned illustration in Le Tour du Monde. These images represent battle scenes in which mounted warriors confront others on foot. Two of the mounted figures are especially compelling. In the lower right of these images, the coif of the figure depicted resembles that of a warrior appearing on our robe (fig. 5). It is unusual in that the hair is very long and is decorated with discs, probably made of metal. But it is the central figure in de Girardin’s drawing, seen a second time in the detail (fig. 7), which proves to be decisive in our study. It shows a mounted Sioux warrior killing an enemy with a bowed spear. This warrior is carrying a shield with the very specific decoration of a downturned crescent form that unequivocally appears to be the same design as that shown carried by the warriors on our painted robe (figs. 2 and 3), whom we call the warrior with the “horned” shield. While traditional shields are most often decorated with stylized representations of animals (bison, bears, deer, birds of prey) or with sun motifs, representations of this type are rare if not exceptional. No other shield that even remotely resembles this one has been found in any of the resources these authors have been able to locate. It is reasonable to conclude that the drawing by de Girardin is a more or less faithful reproduction of all or a part of a robe that he copied while visiting the Sioux in 1849 and 1850. Moreover, it is clearly indicated in his caption for the drawing that it was produced based on a painting by a Sioux warrior. While it clearly is an image that de Girardin saw on a painted hide, it is not the same robe as the one now in the Musée du Quai Branly. However, the two show an important commonality: The same figure is clearly depicted in both cases. The strong resemblances with de Girardin’s documentation combined with coinciding dates and times allow us On the facing page, an illustration captioned “Dessins et hiéroglyphes sioux” (Sioux drawings and hieroglyphics) depicts one of these robes. The author continues, saying, “A corner of the painting shows a warrior, who, after having killed his wife, makes peace with his fatherin law and smokes the peace pipe.” A note in the article states that “all of the drawings in this account were executed by M. Lancelot, based on sketches brought back by the traveler.” The information provided by the 1864 publication and correspondence with our Canadian colleague Arni Brownstone eventually led to the establishment of a possible link between the newly acquired robe and the French traveler and artist. Three scrapbooks of de Girardin’s paintings and drawings have been preserved and they provide information on his itinerary, the places he visited, and encounters he had. De Girardin apparently gave these books to a school friend of his before departing for Panama. They include nearly 200 drawings and watercolors of landscapes and Native Americans produced on the spot on the Plains and in the Rockies. François de Gourcez published the most important of these online and described the French artist’s story and itinerary in detail.4 Among de Girardin’s many drawings, two watercolors immediately attracted our attention. Portfolio num- FIG. 6 (below): Eugène de Girardin, D’après la peinture d’un guerrier sioux (From a Painting by a Sioux Warrior). Watercolor on paper. De Giradin portfolio number 10. Private collection. FIG. 7 (bottom): Eugène de Girardin, D’après la peinture d’un guerrier sioux (From a Painting by a Sioux Warrior). This is a detail rendering of the same scene shown in fig. 6. Watercolor on paper. 24 x 10 cm. De Giradin portfolio number 63. Private collection.
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