Facsimile of an Omaha Robe

Created in 1865, Facsimile of an Omaha Robe is an oil painting executed on card that has been adhered to a paperboard support. The work belongs to the tradition of American folk art and is presented as an allegorical scene rather than a literal record. Its composition is framed by a wavy orange border that encloses a stylized depiction of Plains life.

At the center of the image a solitary bison stands between two striped tents, each topped with a pole and feathered ornament. Small dot-like forms surround the animal, possibly representing people or objects, while a line of trees with tiny faces crowns the upper edge. The arrangement suggests a quotidian moment on the Omaha reservation, rendered with symbolic rather than documentary intent.

George Catlin traveled the American West on five expeditions during the 1830s, producing portraits and written accounts of Plains Indian cultures. By the mid‑1860s, his focus had shifted toward more stylized, allegorical representations, reflecting both his accumulated observations and the growing public appetite for romanticized images of Native life.

Although not as widely reproduced as Catlin’s portrait series, this work illustrates his later artistic phase and contributes to the visual archive of 19th‑century Indigenous representation. It remains a reference point for scholars examining the intersection of folk art, ethnographic illustration, and the allegorical treatment of cultural subjects in American art history.