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Plains Indian (Lakota Sioux) Split Buffalo Horn War Bonnet
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Lakota This headpiece has a buckskin crown covered with ermine. The bison horns were split, polished and rubbed with red ochre on the back sides. Such a bonnet was worn by only select society members. It is said that such a bonnet could strike fear into the enemy and cause them to retreat, knowing they would be helpless against the power this bonnet gave its wearer. The ermine was associated with power and courage. Also called a weasel, the ermine is brown in the summer but turns white in winter. It is a tiny creature, but will confront animals more than twice its size. This bravery caused Native Americans to admire the ferocious creature by attaching it to war items and thereby gaining the ermine’s power. #08 |
| The bison horns imbued the strength of the buffalo into the headdress and the red earth paint, used in various places, added to the medicine of the bonnet. |
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Artifacts by Sioux Replications / All images © Franz Brown
| Artifacts Group 1 / Group 2 / Group 3 |
