1865年安德鲁印第安和平奖章 极美
1865 Andrew Johnson Indian Peace Medal. Silver. First Size. Julian IP-40, Prucha-52, Musante GW-770, Baker-173X. About Uncirculated. 75.6 mm. 2674.3 grains. Original integral suspension mount with loop intact, but showing evidence of some repair. Light silver gray dominates both sides, while pleasing accents of blue, green and dark gray toning outline the central devices and accentuate the legends around. Scattered small marks in the slightly reflective fields, as expected, though the condition is rather impressive and there is really no damage to speak of. This is a medal that was prized by its recipient and passed down with care. Carefully inscribed on the upper reverse, "BROTHER, I AM PLEASED WITH YOU!"The singular thing that causes a silver Peace medal to be so prized is its history. In nearly every individual case, this is limited to simply a general understanding of how these medals as a class were used, the groups they were reported (or believed) to have been given to, the administrations they were authorized by or the agents who distributed them. Of course, this is all against a backdrop of the specific time period of the medal itself and whatever issues or politics were informing the relations between Native Americans and those who were increasingly moving into their traditional lands. Only in very rare cases do we have the pleasure of handling one of these medals with the benefit of precise knowledge as to the original recipient, and this is one of those landmark occasions.This medal first came to the attention of the writer in 2001 by way of a telephone call that led to its eventual consignment for sale, for the first time ever, in our May 2001 Bowers and Merena auction. It was one of five medals that came to us, remarkably, with complete provenances back to indigenous owners or original recipients. When we presented this medal for sale in 2001, its unique history was given as follows:"This historic medal was presented to the Blackfoot Sioux (Sihasapa) chief Kill Eagle by order of President Andrew Johnson for Kill Eagles role in the safe return of captive Fanny Kelly to Fort Pierre, South Dakota in 1865. According to historian Dr. Sally Roesch Wagner, Kelly "was taken captive in July 1864 by a war part of Hunkpapa Sioux in Wyoming. During most of the five months she was held prisoner, Mrs. Kelly stayed in the lodgings of Sitting Bull, the famous leader, as a guest, of his family, and I was treated as a guest, she wrote." Fierce territorial fighting between the tribes of the Great Plains began in earnest in 1851 after the Treaty of Fort Laramie, and by 1862 the Santee Uprising in Minnesota took the hostilities to a new level with the onset of the Sioux War of 1862. Dozens of Anglo captives were taken during this period, which provoked a rash of "captivity narratives" that were published both serially and in a book form; Fanny Kellys 1871 book, My Captivity Among the Sioux Indians</em> was among the most famous published during this period and remains readily available in reprint form to this day."Fanny Wiggins Kelly was born in 1845 and moved to Kansas in 1856. By 1864, Kelly and her family were emigrating even further west to Idaho, and in July of that year her traveling party was attacked by "a party of about 250 Indians, painted and equipped for war, who uttered the wild war-whoop and fired a volley of guns and revolvers into the air." Kelly remained in captivity for five months, before two Blackfeet Indians, Kill Eagle and his brother Short Gun, traded their horses to the Oglala Sioux for her and another woman. These Blackfeet saw to Kellys safe return to the hands of the U.S. Government, though her account and the notes of A.B. Welch differ on whether or not Kelly was initially returned at Fort Sully or Fort Pierre, both in south Dakota. Kelly says of the Blackfeet, "these savages proved very kind to me. Though their nation is regarded by the whites as very vindictive and hostile, they showed me nothing by civility and respect." Word of Kellys capture, which had become a bit of a cause celebre on the frontier, reached the highest echelons of power, and by the end of 1865 President Andrew Johnson had instructed gifts to be given to the two loyal Blackfeet. Johnsons letter, reproduced in full below, dictated that "as a memento of my perpetual friendship for Nootay-u-hah and his brother, so long as they remain friendly with my white children, I direct that a silver medal be given to each of them with a suitable inscription, that all my red children and all my white children when they look upon it may know that their Great Father in Washington is greatly pleased with Nootay-u-hah and Nootay-u-hahs brother." Pursuant to this Presidential order, both medals were engraved, presumably upon delivery to the local Indian agent in the Dakota Territory, "BROTHER, I AM PLEASED WITH YOU!" at the top of the reverse. The medal presented to Kill Eagles brother, Short Gun, bears the identical inscription and resides in the collections of the South Dakota State Historical Society. The original letter from Johnson remains associated with it.This is an especially important Peace medal, considering its remarkable provenance to one of the most famous violent interactions between the Plains Indians and American settlers, and the affectionate and evocative engraving ordered by President Andrew Johnson. This pair represent the only occasion we are aware of where such an official presentation engraving was directed to be added to one of the awarded Peace medals, and as this is the only one in private hands, it stands as an exceptionally historic prize. It is very doubtful if a more interesting specimen is available to collectors. It was a highlight of our May 2001 offering and must certainly be counted among the highlights of the present sale as well.The present writer is aware of as many as 20 different large-size Johnson medals, however, a couple of them appear to be of questionable authenticity and have not been examined personally. One does not seem to have ever had a hanger. Seven of the medals are in institutional holdings and only the two BROTHER, I AM PLEASED WITH YOU medals have reliable provenances to their original recipients. According to Prucha, a total of 90 large-size medals were originally struck for the Johnson Administration. While we are not reprinting the entirety of President Johnsons order here, we would be pleased to offer to the buyer of this lot photocopies from our 2001 catalog presentation of this medal. This will provide not only the Presidential order, but also the detailed background of Major A.B. Welch in whose estate this medal was found. Presented to Blackfoot Chief, Kill Eagle on behalf of President Andrew Johnson in 1865; by descent to his grandson, James Eagle Horn, to A.B. Welch, before 1939; Bowers and Merena, May 2001, lot 1131; a Private Collector; Sotheby’s, May 2018, lot 196.
