Pine Ridge Indians (Squaw Dance), No. 64

This Oglala Lakota dance was photographed at Pine Ridge in the spring of 1908 by Solomon D. Butcher & Son of Kearney, Nebraska. It is numbered 64 in a copyrighted series and offers a compelling counterpoint to plate number 62, which captures the same event from a distance. Here the photographer stands within the circle of onlookers, providing a more immediate perspective on the participants and their heavily ornamented attire. The women’s dresses feature elaborate arrangements of dentalium shells and German-silver concho discs, elements of formal wear for the period.