 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
William Henry Holmes has provided us with what appear to be the most accurate tracings of the Pipestone petroglyphs. As an artist he recognized and recorded the subtleties found in the engraved stones, and attempted to re-establish the original order that they appeared in before they were quarried around 1884.
Nebraska archaeologist Tom Thiessen provided this short biography of Holmes:
"A native of Ohio, young Holmes like to draw. He went to Washington, D.C., in 1871 to seek training in art. While sketching birds at the Smithsonian, his ability was recognized, and in 1872 he was appointed as artist to the newly-established U.S. Geological Survey. In 1874, he was appointed assistant geologist in the Survey. While traveling in the West in these capacities, he was introduced to archeological remains in the Southwest and at Yellowstone, which resulted in a lifelong interest in archeology. In 1882, while still with the USGS, he was appointed honorary curator for aboriginal pottery at the Smithsonian. In 1889, Holmes was appointed to direct the "archaeologic fieldwork" of the Bureau of American Ethnology. It was in this capacity that he visited Pipestone in 1892.In 1894, he left the Smithsonian to accept a curator of anthropology position at the Field Museum in Chicago. He returned to the Smithsonian in 1897, where he accepted the position of head curator of the Department of Anthropology of the U.S. National Museum. He succeeded to the position of chief of the Bureau of American Ethnology in 1902. He gave up this position in 1910 and became head of the Division of Anthropology in the National Museum and also curator of the American gallery of Art. In 1921 he resigned as head curator of anthropology in the Museum and became director of the National Gallery of Art, a position he held until he fully retired in 1932. He died the following year."
Holmes resented the decision by Bennett to quarry the slabs bearing the images, although it was felt that to leave them in place would invite vandals and thieves. He held Winchell responsible and castigated him publicly in the 10th Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology for his careless renditions of the glyphs :
"The trouble with the figures copied and published by Prof. Winchell is that they are not arranged in the original order. It will now be impossible to correct this entirely, as most of the stones have been taken up and removed. The Winchell drawings were evidently drawn by eye and have a large personal equation; besides, they are mixed up while appearing to be in some order. The few groups that I was able to get are, it seems to me, of more interest than all the single figures you could put in a book. There can be little doubt that in the main this great group of pictures was arranged in a definite order, agreeing with the arrangement of mythical personages and positions usual in the aboriginal ceremonials of the region. It is a great pity that the original order has been destroyed, but the inroads of relic hunters and inscription cranks made it necessary to take up the stones. One large stone was taken to Minneapolis by Prof. Winchell. There are a few pieces still in place. All were near the base of one of the great granite bowlders, and it is said here that formerly, within the memory of the living, the place was visited by Indians who wished to consult the gods."Winchell, of course, took some offense, and provided a rebuttal that can be found here: Winchell and Lewis.
Reproduced here are the Holmes tracings courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution. Click on the thumbnail to view the full page image.
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|