History of the Indian Tribes of North America, with Biographical Sketches and Anecdotes of the Principle Chiefs. Embellished with One Hundred Portraits from the Indian Gallery in the War Department at Washington. (Three volumes).
Philadelphia: Rice, Rutter & Co, 1870. Hardcover. Three volumes complete of one of the "most costly and important works ever published on American Indians" (Field) with stunning hand colored lithographic plates of Native Americans, from the original paintings of Charles Bird King.
The author, Thomas McKenney, who was US superintendent of Indian Trade in Georgetown, wanted to develop a government collection of noted Native Americans who visited Washington DC as delegates of their tribes, and so engaged Charles King, a noted portrait painter to make the portraits. King's portraits of leaders from at least 20 tribes were painted from life. Bird exhibited his portraits at the Smithsonian Institution until unfortunately the majority of them were destroyed by fire in 1865.
McKenney and Hall's reproduction of the King portraits in the hand colored lithographs in these 3 volumes was an unrivaled aesthetic and technological accomplishment.
The 3 volumes have a total of the 100 plates as stated on the title page. However Vol. I has 39 of 40 plates (missing Moanhonga at p. 177); Vol. II is complete with 48 of 48 plates called for on the contents page plus 2 extra unlisted plates, Billy Bowlegs (at p. 1 & described in the following pages) and John Ross (no. 88 1/2 at p. 290); and Vol. III with 10 of 11 plates, (missing Tuko-See-Mathla at p73.)
Tall 4to. Vol I: frontispiece, iv, 333pp; Vol II: frontispiece, iv, 3-319pp; Vol III: frontispiece, iv, 17-392pp. Three quarter dark brown leather and brown cloth boards very scuffed and worn, inner hinges cracked but holding; the early plates damp stained at some margins, but well away from the image. A stunning collection of portraits, an ideal set to make up another set. Howes M 129 (but erroneously stating this edition with 120 plates); OCLC: 3574961. Item #24217
Sold