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Edward S. Curtis collection of interpositive glass plates and papers, 1899-1929 (inclusive)

Extent:

22 linear feet (44 boxes (2 boxes currently available to researchers))

Abstract:

Edward S. Curtis (1868-1952) was a photographer, best known for documenting more than eighty tribes of Native Americans west of the Mississippi from the Mexican border to northern Alaska. In addition to taking more than 40,000 pictures over 30 years, Curtis produced The North American Indian, a set of twenty volumes containing text, photogravures, and a corresponding portfolio with additional photogravures. This collection consists of two gifts of glass plate interpositives with extensive artistic modifications by Edward Curtis for his The North American Indian as well as a small number of proof sheets of photogravures, largely from portfolios, bearing editorial markings and corrections; correspondence and material relating to the funding and publishing of the The North American Indian; and brochures and pamphlets advertising Curtis's studio and his photography.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts [Contact Us]