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Berke, Ernest,
Arizona Bronze,
Ethnic -- Indian
Figure male -- Full length
Animal -- Horse
Occupation -- Military
Dress -- Ethnic
State of Being -- Death
Outdoor Sculpture -- Tennessee -- Memphis
Sculpture
The Death Song, (sculpture).
Artist:
Berke, Ernest, 1921- , sculptor.
Arizona Bronze, founder.
Title:
The Death Song, (sculpture).
Dates:
Cast 1984.
Digital Reference:
Medium:
Bronze with brown patina.
Dimensions:
Sculpture: approx. 5 ft. 8 in. x 6 ft. 8 in. x 6 ft. 8 in.; Base: approx. 1 ft. x 6 ft. x 6 ft. 8 in.
Inscription:
Ernest Berke signed
Description:
A standing male Teton Sioux, legs shoulder width apart, arms at sides, face lifted. He has feathers in his long hair, a loincloth, a knife tied to his waist, and mocasins. He holds a round shield in his proper left hand and a weapon in his proper right hand. He also wears a long sash which is pinned to the ground with a small lance. At his feet, his exhausted
horse
lies on its side. The man and his
horse
are positioned on a roughly circular plinth which has a textured surface.
Subject:
Ethnic
--
Indian
--
Teton Sioux
Figure male
--
Full length
Animal
--
Horse
Occupation
--
Military
Dress
--
Ethnic
--
Indian Dress
State of Being
--
Death
Object Type:
Outdoor Sculpture
--
Tennessee
--
Memphis
Sculpture
Owner:
Promus Companies, 1023 Cherry Road, Memphis, Tennessee 38117
Remarks:
Cast no. 2/2.
Inscription on nearby plaque reads: THE DEATH SONG/By Ernest Berke/Among the leading tribes of the Central Plains, the Teton Sioux included the/Akicita as one of its more highly developed military societies. The Akicita Society/contains groups which governed the activities of the tribe in military matters, tribe/movements and conduct of the hunters during hunting expeditions./Prominent among the Akicita was the notorious Miwatani Society numbering/approximately twenty members. One characteristic was the custom of two of its/chosen members called the sash wearers, staking themselves to the ground in the/face of an enemy attack./
In this bronze, the warrior standing beside the body of his exhausted pony/prepares to do battle with the foe by singing his "Death Song" and pinning his long sash to the ground with a small wooden lance. This allowed some freedom of action,/but under no circumstances could the sash wearer pull out the lance and retreat. A/retreat would invite scorn from his fellow warriors and the shame of his people. Only/exceptional performance in battle would allow another warrior to remove the lance/and permit the sash wearer to escape from otherwise certain death.
References:
Save Outdoor Sculpture, Tennessee survey, 1992.
Illustration:
Image on file.
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN), July 28, 1985, pg. J1.
Note:
The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.
Repository:
Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
Control Number:
IAS TN000044
Copy/Holding information
Smithsonian AmericanArt Museum
Control Number
Inventory of American Sculpture
TN000044
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