Addíh-Hiddísch, Hidatsa Chief

Addíh-Hiddísch (Maker of Roads) was an accomplished Hidatsa chief from the village of Awacháwi. He posed wearing a European-style coach driver’s hat with elk insignia, topped by a feather tipped with a lock of dyed horsehair. This adaptation of Euro-American trade items is also reflected in his peace medal, a gift from US officials, to which he added highly valued grizzly bear claws, an expression of leadership within his Hidatsa community. Particularly notable are the extensive tattoo designs covering the chief’s right arm, hand, and chest, made using a blue-black dye obtained from willow bark. In 1906 the chief’s nephew Poor Wolf recounted the tattooing process to an anthropologist, noting that fasting and singing accompanied this traditional rite.