Mandan Pipe

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Artist

Karl Bodmer

Birth and death dates

1809 - 1893

Artist Nationality

Swiss

Title

Mandan Pipe

Date

February 15, 1834

Dimensions

10 1/16 × 12 11/16 in. (25.6 × 32.2 cm)

Medium

Watercolor on paper

Institution

Joslyn Art Museum

Credit Line

Gift of the Enron Art Foundation

Accession Number

1986.49.271

Rights (i.e. copyright information)

Joslyn Art Museum

Photographer credit

Photograph © Bruce M. White, 2019

Commentary

Pipes and smoking were associated primarily with men's ritual activities. In speaking of the Mandans, Maximilian remarked that pipes were made of stone, clay, or wood and that many people fashioned their pipes "according to their own taste" to reflect a personal vision or supernatural belief. He cited the pipe of Dipäuch, illustrated here, as an example. Dipäuch was a respected man and apparently a religious leader well versed in the myths and sacred traditions of his people. The shape of his pipe was said to represent the Lord of Life in human form. The bowl symbolized the deity's head, the hollow area below his stomach, and the stem the legs and feet. The bowl of this pipe is red clay, and the stem is wood. Dipäuch used it to consecrate his arrows and invoked its power to protect him from enemy arrows. Dipäuch's pipe was among several artifacts pictured in Tableau 21 of the published aquatints.

References in Journal

February 15, 1834

Labels:

study

Approximate Depicted Location:

Mih-Tutta-Hang-Kusch, Mandan Village