The North American Indian – Oppenheimer Field Museum Edition

Edward Sheriff Curtis’ monumental The North American Indian consisted of a series of 20 volumes that included photographs, ethnographic studies, and personal narratives of Native Americans. Gathered over the course of three decades in the early 20th century, Curtis’ project resulted in over 40,000 images of Native Americans from more than eighty tribes. The sepia-toned photogravures were printed on three kinds of paper; Holland van gelder, Japon vellum, and Japon tissue. Curtis’ photographs remain an important visual record of Native American cultures at the turn of the 20th century.

The Oppenheimer Editions publication of Curtis’ 50 Best of The North American Indian is uniquely produced from the original photogravures in the collection of The Field Museum’s Mary W. Runnells Rare Book Room.