Cherokee Indian
Reproduction
Object numberRCSSC/P 246
CollectionHunterian Art
CategoryVisual works
Object nameOil paintings, Portraits
TitleCherokee Indian
DescriptionPortrait of a male native American, by William Hodges, unsigned, one of a pair.
The sitter is a male native American; he is shown seated half length to left, with his face turned towards the viewer. Over his left shoulder is a dark blanket trimmed with white and blue edging. He is wearing a white shirt with a loose white ruff and black stock tied over the collar at the neck. A metal gorget hangs from a chain round his neck. His hair is tied back evenly, with no parting, and he has a six-spoked silver wheel earring in each ear. He is shown against a background of dark cloud, lightening in a wide band which frames his face.
The true identity of the sitters in Hodges' portraits is not known. It has been asserted that they are Richard Justice and Moses Price, who visited London in 1790-1 with William Augustus Bowles, the self-styled 'commander-in-chief' of the Cherokee nation.
The portrait was owned by John Hunter before 1793, and was among those displayed in his museum in Leicester Square.
Owner/user
transferred
Related objectsRCSSC/P 245
Physical Location
LocationNot on public display: contact museum for access conditions
Physical Information
Physical descriptionOil on canvas, 75cm by 62cm.
Bibliography
SourceClift 1816
NotesManuscript list titled "A List of Paintings and Drawings framed and glazed, numbered according to the Situation in which they were placed round the rail of the Gallery in Mr. Hunter's museum in Castle Street Leicester Square"
Transcript31. A Cherokee Indian who was in London in 1790-1791.
Painted by W. Hodges R.A. for Mr. Hunter
