Seated Portrait of 'Milk' — Brulé Lakota

The Nebraska photographer William R. Cross created an extensive visual record of the Brulé and Oglala Lakota at the Rosebud and Pine Ridge agencies. This studio carte-de-visite portrays the Brulé headman known as Milk, who is identified by his name lettered in period script across the crown of his hat. Milk was a recurring subject for Cross, and the photographer’s backmark advertising views from the New Spotted Tail Agency confirms the portrait’s origin after 1878.