Collection
/
Arts of the Americas

Dress

Sioux; possibly Santee, Sioux

1 of 2

Caption

Sioux; possibly Santee, Sioux. Dress, late 19th–early 20th century. Wool cloth, elk teeth,(or teeth carved from horn) silk ribbon, brass and tin sequins, 49 5/8 x 36 1/4 in. (126 x 92.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Stewart Smith Memorial Fund, 46.96.13. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)

Gallery

Not on view

Title

Dress

Date

late 19th–early 20th century

Geography

Place made: United States

Medium

Wool cloth, elk teeth,(or teeth carved from horn) silk ribbon, brass and tin sequins

Classification

Clothing

Dimensions

49 5/8 x 36 1/4 in. (126 x 92.1 cm)

Credit Line

Charles Stewart Smith Memorial Fund

Accession Number

46.96.13

Frequent Art Questions

  • What kinds of teeth were used on garments like this to decorate it?

    The teeth you see on this dress come from an elk. It was a very popular design on Plains women's clothing in the 19th century.
    The large number of teeth on this garment indicates that its owner was of relatively high status. One elk only yields two teeth of this type so they required a lot of effort to obtain.

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bkmcollections@brooklynmuseum.org.

Artists and makers

Sioux

93 works in the collection

Santee, Sioux

5 works in the collection