HISTORIC INSCTIPTIONS - GENERAL CROOK, 1876:

"G. Crook, 1876", inscription.

Photo:Urbaniak, 2014.

I have mentioned this inscription in two previous postings (to view them click on the General Crook entry in the cloud index at the bottom of the blog) but only from field drawings as I did not have an actual photo of it. Now I can present a photograph of the General Crook inscription courtesy of the previously cited (Tom Horn, 12/11/2015; Kid Curry) 2014 thesis dissertation of Timothy Urbaniak, HISTORIC INSCRIPTIONS OF THE NORTHERN PLAINS IDENTITY AND INFLUENCE IN THE RESIDUAL COMMUNICATION . Tim has generously allowed me to reproduce some of his illustrations of historic inscriptions and quote his text.

"From 1875 to 1882 - Crook was head of the Department of the Platte. Crook served against the Sioux during the Great Sioux War of 1876-77. He fought the Lakota at the Battle of the Rosebud. On 28 May 1876, Brigadier General George Crook assumed direct command of the Bighorn and Yellowstone Expedition at Fort Fetterman." (Wikipedia)

General Crook, Wikimedia.

Crook left Fort Fetterman the next day with over 1,000 troops consisting of "15 companies from the 2nd and 3rd Cavalry, 5 companies from the 4th and 9th Infantry, 250 mules and 106 wagons. On 14 June, the column was joined by 261 Shoshone and Crow allies." (Wikipedia)

"The Battle of the Rosebud," from

Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper,

1876, public domain.

On 17 June, during a rest break, the troops heard gunfire from the north and a scout rushed into the camp shouting, "Lakota, Lakota" and the Battle of the Rosebud was beginning. "By 0830, the Sioux and Cheyenne had hotly engaged Crook's Indian allies on the high ground north of the main body. Heavily outnumbered, the Crow and Shoshone scouts fell back toward the camp, but their fighting withdrawal gave Crook time to deploy his forces. Rapidly firing the soldiers drove off the attackers but used up much of the ammunition meant for use later in the campaign. Low on ammunition and with numerous wounded, the General returned to his post. Historians debate whether Crook's pressing on could have prevented the killing of five companies of the 7th Cavalry Regiment led by George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn." (Wikipedia)

"G. Crook, 1876", inscription

highlighted. Photo:Urbaniak, 2014.

"At the Rosebud Battlefield there is a long sandstone cliff line that was once used as a buffalo jump and that has provided a canvas for communication for millennia. Petroglyphs dating to precontact times, primarily in the form of shield figures, are incised along the surface of the sandstone cliff. The surface also contains historic inscriptions including one of "G. Crook 1876" (Figure 5.40); since the incising is shallow, it has been traced for clarity (Figure 5.41). Due to the fact that it takes time to create an inscription, even such a shallow one, and due to the fact that the Rosebud Battle began in the morning and just a few hours after Crook and his men arrived at Rosebud Creek, there was not likely a lot of time for a pre-battle incising, and there is no mention of the act in Crook's autobiography (Crook 1986:194). It is possible that someone else carved it as a commemoration; or Crook created he inscription when he returned to the site in the 1890s; although if that was the case he did not spend much in the effort." (Urbaniak 2014:122-3)

So, is this inscription attributable to General Crook? Well, if in the sense of did General Crook carve it himself, I do not think we can answer that. But, if in the sense of was it carved by someone else when General Crook was there (in the general vicinity) I think that is very likely. In either case it brings back a fascinating period of Western History - thank you Tim.

REFERENCES:

Urbianik, Timothy Rostov,

2014    HISTORIC INSCRIPTIONS OF THE NORTHERN PLAINS IDENTITY AND INFLUENCE IN THE RESIDUAL COMMUNICATION, Dissertation Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology The University of Montana Missoula, MT,  July 2014.

Wikipedia

METEORITES IN ROCK ART - CONTINUED?

On January 18, 2013, I posed the question “can we identify meteorites or meteorite falls in rock art?” Although I have been looking for some time I have not, as yet, been able to identify any image that I can realistically state might represent a meteorite. However, there are examples of images of meteors and meteorites in Native American art that we might use as models in our search.

Lone Dog winter count, painted on buffalo hide.

In their wonderful 2007 book The Year the Stars Fell: Lakota Winter Counts at the Smithsonian, Candace S. Greene and Russell Thornton illustrate the imagery used by Lakota artist/historians to record each year in Winter Counts, kept as a historic record of the tribe or clan.  For the year 1821-22, many winter counts use the symbol of a star with a tail or line behind it. This records a large meteor that passed over Lakota territory from the southeast to the northwest, and reportedly exploded with great noise over Dakota Territory.

They provide illustrations of this drawn in the Lone Dog winter count, The Flame winter count, The Swan winter count, Long Soldier winter count, Cloud Shield winter count, Rosebud winter count, and Battiste Good winter count, and each example is a variation of the star with a line extending from it.

1821-22, Lone Dog Winter Count.

Greene and Thornton, 2007.

1821-22, Long Soldier Winter Count.

Greene and Thornton, 2007.

1821-22, Battiste Good's Winter Count.

Greene and Thornton, 2007.

In viewing these remember that the direction of the line may indicate where it passed overhead in relation to the observer. To understand this, think of an airplane contrail above you in the clear sky.  Thus, in the examples by The Flame, Rosebud, Cloud Shield, Lone Dog, and the one procured from Major Bush, the line is beneath the star suggesting that it was observed somewhere toward the horizon for the viewer and appeared to rise upwards as it approached the zenith. Long Soldier’s image shows it passing from right to left suggesting that he was to the south of its apparent track and he saw it going from right to left in the northern sky. Battiste Good’s drawing shows the meteorite on a generally downward path suggesting that from his viewing point the meteorite appeared generally above him, and he saw it as if descending toward the  horizon.

As I stated above, I personally know of no rock art imagery that fits these descriptions, however, that certainly does not mean that they are not out there. Indeed, given that so many illustrations of this event were created on hide and muslin in Winter Counts, the surprise would be if there were no rock art examples created also. If you know of any please send me a photo and let's get it posted.

And if you find this of interest check my PowerPoint WHEN THE STARS FELL - the 1833 meteor storm  listed in the right sidebar of this page.

http://www.slideshare.net/archeofaris/when-the-stars-fell-slide-show

REFERENCES:

Greene, Candace S. and Russell Thornton

2007    The Year the Stars Fell: Lakota Winter Counts at the Smithsonian, Smithsonian National Museum.