Catalogue Description:
Pair of moccasins with totally beaded blue and red thunderbird designs. According to Osage, Sean Standing Bear, 10/20/2000, non-Osage person might have made these because the birds are positioned upside down. Osage design dictates indicate the birds would point skywards.
10/13/04: Reviewed by Tim Ramsey, Southern Cheyenne/Choctaw bead artist who said they were definitely Cheyenne. Style components are: the extra bead strip that runs across the top of the vamp in front, another bead strip vertical along the heel and the 7 designs spaced over the body with a central design right on the toe. In addition, the bird depicted is not a thunderbird but a scissortail. This is a silvery grey bird with a light salmon breast. It has a white and black head. It's tail feathers are very long and split, gracefully as they show in the beadwork, and are usually white, sometimes with a salmon blush to part of them, with black tips. The feathers are used to make fans carried by the Cheyenne men.
B Hail 11/2006: Beadwork is definitely Cheyenne on the toe although has elements in the back that is used by other groups.
