Indegenous Peoples, Sih-Chidae, Mahhchsi-Karehde
Carl Bodmer – Sih-Chidä & Mahhchsi-Karehde, Mandan Indians
“Sih-Chidä & Mahhchsi-Karehde”
Mandan Indians – Mandans
Aquatint engraving after Carl Bodmer (1809–1893)
Engraved by Hürlimann
Uncolored impression
Published as Plate 20 in:
Reise in das Innere Nord-America in den Jahren 1832 bis 1834
(Travels in the Interior of North America during the Years 1832–1834)
Author: Maximilian, Prince of Wied-Neuwied (1782–1867)
Artist: Carl Bodmer (1809–1893)
A Remarkable Record of the Mandan People
This important 19th-century portrait depicts Sih-Chidä and Mahhchsi-Karehde, members of the Mandan people, based on Carl Bodmer's original work during the extraordinary expedition of Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied to the interior of North America in 1832–1834.
Maximilian, a German naturalist and ethnographer, undertook the expedition to document the natural history, geography, and Indigenous peoples of the North American interior. He was accompanied by the young Swiss artist Carl Bodmer, whose detailed drawings and watercolors became some of the most important visual records of Native American peoples of the northern Great Plains.
The expedition traveled up the Missouri River, reaching the region of present-day North Dakota, where Maximilian and Bodmer spent the winter of 1833–1834 at Fort Clark, near the villages of the Mandan and neighboring peoples. Bodmer made numerous portraits and ethnographic studies there, documenting individuals, clothing, ornaments, material culture, and ceremonial practices with remarkable attention to detail.
The resulting publication, issued in parts beginning in the 1830s, is one of the most important illustrated accounts of the American West before the great transformation brought by later westward expansion. Bodmer's images are particularly significant because they were made from direct observation, rather than being based on secondhand reports or earlier European representations.
Maximilian and Bodmer's Journey
Maximilian's expedition followed the Missouri River from St. Louis northward toward the upper Missouri, visiting settlements and trading posts along the way. At Fort Clark, the travelers had extensive contact with the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara, among other Indigenous peoples.
The Mandans had already suffered catastrophic population losses from smallpox epidemics, particularly the devastating epidemic of 1837, only a few years after Maximilian and Bodmer's visit. Consequently, Bodmer's portraits from 1833–1834 have exceptional documentary importance: they preserve detailed images of Mandan individuals and culture from a period for which comparatively little visual documentation survives.
The Bodmer Plates
Bodmer's original drawings and paintings were subsequently transformed into large-format engraved plates for Maximilian's Reise in das Innere Nord-America. The illustrations were produced using aquatint and related engraving techniques, allowing the engravers to reproduce the tonal qualities and subtle modeling of Bodmer's original works.
This is an uncolored impression, printed on substantial cream wove paper, and bears the Bodmer dry stamp, an important feature associated with impressions from the original publication.
Condition
Very good overall condition.
The print is uncolored, with light general age toning. There are a few isolated small spots within the plate area. The plate marks are clearly visible, with additional paper extending above and below the engraved image.
The print is on heavy cream wove paper and retains the Bodmer dry stamp.
Plate size: approximately 50 × 42 cm (19.7 × 16.5 in.)
Sheet size: 61 × 44.5 cm (24 × 17.5 in.)
Historical Significance
Bodmer's North American images are regarded as among the most accurate and important visual records of the Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains produced in the 19th century. Unlike many contemporary representations that relied upon stereotypes or secondhand descriptions, Bodmer worked directly from the people and places encountered during the expedition.
For collectors of Native American history, Western Americana, early American exploration, ethnography, and 19th-century prints, the Mandan portraits from Maximilian's expedition are particularly significant.
