Wahktä́geli, Yankton Sioux Chief

Wahktäìgeli (Valiant Warrior)’s community camped near the Sioux Agency, a US military and trading outpost in present-day South Dakota. His impressive regalia heralds accomplishments in leadership and diplomacy. A peace medallion likely commemorates Wahktäìgeli’s signing of the Yankton’s treaty with the United States in 1825. Yellow-dyed horse-hair locks fringing his war shirt enumerate horses stolen, and others of human hair indicate enemies killed or taken captive. Wahktäìgeli patiently posed in these special-occasion garments for hours, resulting in a polished full-length portrait. Despite the background’s incomplete state, this was one of the few compositions that Bodmer signed. Following Lakota diplomatic customs, Wahktäìgeli presented his regalia to the European travelers upon their departure from the agency.