Five Maya Indians

Five Maya Indians was painted by George Catlin in 1862. Following Catlin's death in 1872, the work descended to his daughters Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin. In 1912, the American Museum of Natural History purchased the painting from Elizabeth Wing Catlin.

The museum sold it in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries in New York to Mr. Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. Mellon subsequently gave the work to the National Gallery of Art in 1965, where it is held under accession number 1965.1.44. No exhibition history is recorded in the provided sources.

Five Maya Indians entered the National Gallery of Art's collection through the 1965 gift of Paul Mellon, a trajectory documented in its provenance. Its presence in the museum's collection signals a sustained reputation as an example of George Catlin's ethnographic portraiture, providing a basis for continued scholarly attention to the work.

George Catlin, an American artist who transitioned from a legal career to painting, created Five Maya Indians in 1862. This oil painting on card, subsequently mounted on paperboard, exemplifies his enduring interest in Indigenous cultures. The work features five individuals depicted in traditional attire, positioned near a tree, reflecting Catlin's broader artistic mission to document Native peoples.

Catlin dedicated much of his artistic career to documenting the lives of Native Americans. During the 1830s, he extensively traveled the American West, producing numerous paintings and written accounts that chronicled the Plains Indian cultures. Although created later in his career, Five Maya Indians continues this established focus, demonstrating his sustained commitment to portraying Indigenous subjects from various regions.