Points West: The Feathered Cape and Painted Proof

Junius Brutus Stearns (1810 – 1885). Washington and the Indians, 1847, oil on canvas, 36 x 50 inches.
Loan from Mr. and Mrs. W.D. Weiss. [now returned to lender; L.77.86.2].
This painting was commissioned to represent George Washington's visit to Logstown in present-day Ohio in 1753.
 Image Courtesy of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

July 9, 2014.

Nancy McClure, of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, has posted a short article by Emma I. Hansen and Sarah E. Boehme, of the Points West Magazine, about feathered capes, their probable origins and connections throughout history.

"Approximately 50 feathered capes with similar designs of crescents and inverted triangles exist in museum collections around the world, with 36 in the United States. Without precise collection information, the capes have been attributed in museum records to several cultures ranging from Victorian English to American Indian."

-Emma I. Hansen and Sarah E, Boehme, Points West Magazine.

To read the full article, click here.