“this man Indian fight, and he want/ kill one” (Artist’s inscription, verso)

“An Arikara warrior on horseback and two Sioux warriors on foot are fighting in this drawing. The Arikara warrior carries his shield with its protective design, which he received in a dream, and his lance, which probably belongs to the specific men's society of which he is a member. The horse’s tail is bound up for battle. He charges at the two Sioux, one of whom is wounded. The other Sioux warrior fires a shot at him. In the traditional manner of representing a fired gun, the discharge from the gun is shown, as is the bullet (the round circle with the tail in front of the horse’s face).” (p.44)

William S. Wierzbowski and Helen M. Mangelsdorf in Images of a Vanished Life: Plains Indian Drawing from the Collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1985.