Something out of the ordinary

[Neanderthal]

Here's a pretty special item that we feel honored to be able to display at the Museum of Native American History (shameless plug). This is a trunk that once belonged to Moses Decorah, a Winnebago medicine man. Moses Decorah was a pretty important person for the Winnebago people, as both a medicine man and spokesman for the tribe when the need arose. He also toured with Buffalo Bill and his Wild West show in the late 1800's. The trunk has two levels full of glass containers with various herbs, minerals and all of the necessary tools to create medicine or treatments. Some people believe that Native American healing could be used to treat a variety of human ailments including: heart disease, diabetes and even cancer. Medicine Men had a larger role than as just a traditional healer, they were often spiritual leaders.

 

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[The Grim Reaper]

Very cool Matt. Thanks for sharing a very rare piece of history.

 

[curious kat]

....wow that's very interesting and wonderful to have on display...thanks for sharing it with us!

 

[rock]

Very interesting piece of history.

 

[quito]

Too Cool!

My wife is a Traditional Naturalpath dr. She would really love that stuff.

 

[monsterrack]

That is Great , you can see how he used geodes for bowls to mix herbs, I believe sometimes they get mistaken for paint pots.JMO Super display

 

[Neanderthal]

Here's another pic that shows more of the display. The image on top of the trunk shows Moses Decorah (left).

 

[11KBP]

Here's another pic that shows more of the display.

That’s a neat item Matt. I was fortunate to get a firsthand look at it when D.B. acquired it.
I recall all of those items in your images to be very neatly organized inside of the trunk.

 

[quito]

The feather fan looking article appears to be made of Pheasant feathers.

If that is the case, and they are original, they had to have come from some of the first birds of that type living on the continent. Really cool stuff!

 

[Neanderthal]

That’s a neat item Matt. I was fortunate to get a firsthand look at it when D.B. acquired it.
I recall all of those items in your images to be very neatly organized inside of the trunk.

They were. It was amazing going through it all. We have most of the glass containers out of the truck and numbered. There are signs that have all of the corresponding numbers to inform of the contents and usage of each one.

Wait until you see what we set up last Tuesday, you'll love it! It took all day and I got plenty of pics of the process. I will see if I can post a pic of it on here later for you.

 

[Neanderthal]

The feather fan looking article appears to be made of Pheasant feathers.

If that is the case, and they are original, they had to have come from some of the first birds of that type living on the continent. Really cool stuff!

Good observation! Pheasants were introduced in the 1880's. I've read that some were used as part of Buffalo Bill's "Wild West Show" and I'm assuming that's where he acquired them for the peyote fan. Most dance & peyote fans use eagle feathers (both bald and golden), but I've noticed many of them used exotic birds such as parrot, pheasant, and peacock as well as the more common hawks, owls, and even buzzards.

 

[NCPeaches]

Thank you for sharing, it is incredibly awesome!