Maffet Ledger: Drawing
Unknown Artist
ca. 1874–81
Medium
Graphite, watercolor, and crayon on paper
Dimensions
H. 11 3/4 × W. 5 1/4 in. (29.8 × 13.3 cm)
Classification
Paper-Drawings
Culture
Southern and Northern Cheyenne
Department
Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1968
Accession Number
1978.412.207 (58)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This captivating drawing from the *Maffet Ledger*, created by an unknown Southern or Northern Cheyenne artist around 1874–81, offers a window into Plains Indian life during a transformative era. Produced on a modest sheet of paper (11 3/4 × 5 1/4 inches), it features motifs of horses and men—hallmarks of ledger art, where warriors and storytellers chronicled their world using readily available accounting ledger pages from traders and forts. The mixed media of graphite for precise outlines, watercolor for vibrant color, and crayon for bold accents reflect an innovative adaptation of traditiona...