Book Description

This pictorial classic is a valuable ethnological record of southeastern Indians that also showcases the work of early photographers and artists. A collection of over 350 photographs, paintings, drawings,and woodcuts, Life Portraits offers us an important visual representation of southeastern Indians—at work, at play, in rituals, and in death—when they first encountered Europeans. Studied by historians and archaeologists, as well as museum exhibit designers and costumers, these illustrations provide a wealth of information on native dress and jewelry, house construction, agricultural techniques, warfare, and other aspects of American Indian life. Among the tribes illustrated are Natchez, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole, Chitimacha, Timucua, Powhatan, Tuscarora, Caddo, Yuchi, and Shawnee. A special section of the book quotes historic narratives and comments on the life and work of the artists, lithographers, photographers, and engravers who made the originals. Included among these are Jacques le Moyne, John White, Theodore De Bry, Francis Parsons, Joshua Reynolds, John Trumball, George Catlin, John Mix Stanley, Thomas McKenney, and Samuel Waugh. Life Portraits has been a classic title in southeastern archaeology and a staple of bookstores and museum shops around the country since its original publication in 1958. Because the carefully identified illustrations were secured from a wide variety of sources, including the British Museum, the Charleston Museum, the New York Public Library, and the Oklahoma Historical Society, this volume represents the most comprehensiveand widely available record of Indian images. Designed for Americana collections, it will appeal to general readers as well as professional historians and archaeologists.