Vatican Museums

In 1835 the German artist Ferdinand Pettrich (Dresden 1798 – Rome 1872) moved to the United States of America and during the eight years he spent there (1845-1856) he entered into contact with many native Americans. He drew inspiration from this experience to produce a series of 33 works in plaster, including sculptures and bas-reliefs, representing historical figures belonging to groups indicated in the historical archives of the Ethnological Museum as Shawnee, Sioux, Sauk-Fox, Winnebago and Creek.
The statues well represent the perceptions European culture had of the “other”, and show the different moments in the life of those peoples: everyday life, hunting, war and peace negotiations.
The stylistic features may be traced back to classical statuary, which visibly influenced the artist during his stay in Rome.
The entire collection was donated to Pope Pius IX in 1858.
The sculpture considered here shows a Sauk-Fox mother with her child; the woman, wrapped in a fur cape, is holding a newborn whose plump face recalls the cherubs of western iconography.