The two men portrayed in “War and Peace” would be typical of the 1870’s Plains Indians. The idea for this piece came, in part, by one of the creation stories I read that talked about the first woman who had two sons. One son, whose father was the Sun, grew up to be a Warrior. The other son grew up to be a Shaman or Medicine Man and his father was the Moon. This story explained the two sides of the male ego.

In my sculpture, I show the Medicine Man wearing a buffalo robe. The Plains culture believes that the buffalo came from a spiritual place called the Buffalo Nation. Something from the buffalo was often used in this type of ceremonial offering. Sometimes the skull of the animal was used, but in this case, it is a buffalo robe. The Medicine Man is also wearing a small medicine bag and wheel around his neck. The bag contained different elements of spiritual significance to the wearer. The medicine wheel, being round, was symbolic of life and eternity.

The Shaman is holding his pipe aloft in a gesture of offering to the Great Spirit. In most Native American cultures, the pipe is considered a spiritual instrument, which could be analogous to a bible. Because this piece depicts the act of making an offering to a higher power, the composition demanded that this figure be standing.

The Warrior is wearing typical war regalia. Feathers are sometimes given as symbols of courage. A full war bonnet would be worn by somebody who has proved himself in battle. The cut feather in the back of the bonnet is said to contain the soul of the owner. Other accouterments include a bone breast plate, bear claw necklace, battle lance, bow and quiver of arrows and shield. The shield is used for protection, but also has spiritual significance to the owner. These shields would be adorned with items that were considered to have personal power for the owner.