History of the Indian Tribes of North America with Biographical Sketches and Anecdotes of the Principal Chiefs. Embellished with one hundred and twenty portraits, from the Indian Gallery in the Department of War, at Washington.

Philadelphia: Published by J. T. Bowen, 1848. HALL, James. History of the Indian Tribes of North America. with Biographical Sketches and Anecdotes of the Principal Chiefs. Embellished with one hundred and twenty portraits, from the Indian Gallery in the Department of War, at Washington. Philadelphia: Published by J. T. Bowen, 1848.

Full Description:

McKENNEY, Thomas L., and James Hall. History of the Indian Tribes of North America, with Biographical Sketches and Anecdotes of the Principal Chiefs. Embellished with One Hundred and Twenty Portraits, from the Indian Gallery in the Department of War, at Washington. In Three Volumes. Philadelphia: Published by J.T. Bowen, 1848-1850.

First octavo edition. Three large octavo volumes (10 1/8 x 6 1/2 inches; 258 x 167 mm.). iv, [1]- 333, [1, blank]; xvii, [1, blank], 9-290; iv, 17-392 pp. With hand-colored lithographed dedication leaf (“To the Memory of Washington”) and 120 hand-colored lithographed plates (“Lithd. & Cold. & Published by J.T Bowen, Philada.”) mostly after Charles Bird King, the plates heightened with gum arabic. Protective tissue guard sheets.

Publisher's deluxe blue-black morocco binding. Elaborately stamped and tooled in blind and gilt. Spines stamped and lettered in gilt. Board edges gilt. All edges giltSome wear to spines. A few invisible repairs to hinges. Previous owner's old ink signature on top margin of title-page of each volume. Volume I with some minor dampstaining to lower blank margin. Volume II with some dampstaining to inner gutter. Dampstaining never affecting plates. A small closed tear to the bottom margin of plate "Oche-Fincew" in volume III, not affecting engraving. Overall an excellent copy, the plates very bright and clean.

Originally published in twenty folio parts (three folio volumes) between 1836 and 1844, with 120 hand-colored lithographed plates. The first octavo edition appeared in 1848-1850, with the plates reduced. Several octavo editions were published between 1850 and the 1870s, with varying numbers of plates, some maintaining the original 120, and some abridged to contain as few as forty or fifty plates. All are highly desired today.

“As early as 1824, the practice was begun of taking portraits of the principal Indians who came to Washington, and depositing them in the War Department. They were chiefly painted by Mr. King, an artist of high repute, who has been remarkably successful in transferring to his canvas the strong lineaments of the Indian countenance. Col. M’Kinney [sic], who was for many years superintendent of Indian affairs at Washington, and was thus brought in constant association with the principal men of the nations and tribes which sent representatives to the seat of government, conceived the plan of making this rare and curious collection more valuable to the world by publishing a series of engraved portraits exactly copies and colored from these paintings. With each portrait is connected a biographical sketch of the individual whom it is intended to represent, interspersed with anecdotes and narrations. The work contains also a historical account of the various Indian tribes within the borders of the United States” (Sabin 43410a, describing the 1836-1844 edition). “The original oil paintings of which the plates were copies were all destroyed in the 1865 Smithsonian fire” (Howes).

Howes M-129 (“the most colorful portraits of Indians ever executed”). Sabin 43411 (describing the 1850 octavo edition). Field 992 (1837 ed.).

HBS 69369.

$18,500. (Inventory #: 69369)