Post by blackcrowheart on Oct 3, 2007 13:11:32 GMT -5
British museum honors American Indians who changed history
June 3, 2007
Historic portraits of four American Indians from the Albany area are on
display in London. The four leaders of the Iroquois Confederacy -- Tee
Yee Neen Ho Ga Row, emperor of the Six Nations; Sa Ga Yeath Qua Pieth
Tow, king of the Maquas; Ho Nee Yeath Taw No Row, king of
Generethgarich; Etow Oh Koam, king of the River Nation -- traveled
across the Atlantic Ocean in April 1710 to meet Queen Anne and forge an
alliance against the French.
The portraits, painted by
Dutch-trained artist John Verelst and later bought by the Library and
Archives Canada in 1977, are on display in England for the first time in
"Between Worlds: Voyagers to Britain 1700-1850" at the National Portrait
Gallery. The exhibit focuses on indigenous people from around the world
who were brought to the United Kingdom.
The Albany envoys, labeled the "Four Indian Kings" in Britain, were all
the rage 300 years ago. A performance of "Macbeth" had to be stopped
midway to allow the men to be put onstage so the public could watch both
"spectacles."
Art experts said the paintings commissioned by Queen Anne are unique and
are believed to be the first portraits of native North Americans by
European artists.
"There is an element of observation and accuracy, but within a larger
system of the British vision of Indian-ness," said Stephanie Pratt,
principal lecturer in art history at England's University of Plymouth
and an exhibit curator.
The exhibit opening was marked by a special presentation from native
historian and curator Keith Jamieson, representing the Haudenosaunee
Confederacy Council. Jamieson presented a statement prepared by the
chiefs of the council calling on the British Crown to remind the
Canadian government of the native "sovereignty" enshrined almost 300
years ago. "We seek peace that can only come from mutual respect, trust
and friendship. These portraits remind us of the commitments made
between the Crown and the Haudenosaunee and that these have endured for
centuries. We must see they endure in the future."
Tristan Stewart-Robertson is a freelance writer based in Scotland.
June 3, 2007
Historic portraits of four American Indians from the Albany area are on
display in London. The four leaders of the Iroquois Confederacy -- Tee
Yee Neen Ho Ga Row, emperor of the Six Nations; Sa Ga Yeath Qua Pieth
Tow, king of the Maquas; Ho Nee Yeath Taw No Row, king of
Generethgarich; Etow Oh Koam, king of the River Nation -- traveled
across the Atlantic Ocean in April 1710 to meet Queen Anne and forge an
alliance against the French.
The portraits, painted by
Dutch-trained artist John Verelst and later bought by the Library and
Archives Canada in 1977, are on display in England for the first time in
"Between Worlds: Voyagers to Britain 1700-1850" at the National Portrait
Gallery. The exhibit focuses on indigenous people from around the world
who were brought to the United Kingdom.
The Albany envoys, labeled the "Four Indian Kings" in Britain, were all
the rage 300 years ago. A performance of "Macbeth" had to be stopped
midway to allow the men to be put onstage so the public could watch both
"spectacles."
Art experts said the paintings commissioned by Queen Anne are unique and
are believed to be the first portraits of native North Americans by
European artists.
"There is an element of observation and accuracy, but within a larger
system of the British vision of Indian-ness," said Stephanie Pratt,
principal lecturer in art history at England's University of Plymouth
and an exhibit curator.
The exhibit opening was marked by a special presentation from native
historian and curator Keith Jamieson, representing the Haudenosaunee
Confederacy Council. Jamieson presented a statement prepared by the
chiefs of the council calling on the British Crown to remind the
Canadian government of the native "sovereignty" enshrined almost 300
years ago. "We seek peace that can only come from mutual respect, trust
and friendship. These portraits remind us of the commitments made
between the Crown and the Haudenosaunee and that these have endured for
centuries. We must see they endure in the future."
Tristan Stewart-Robertson is a freelance writer based in Scotland.