Judging by his costume and hair, this 19th century, hand carved Native American with removable lance is meant to be a Mohican, a tribe related to the Lenape Indians originally occupying a territory around what is now Albany NY. Looking at the subject’s calm leather stocking bravado, it is difficult not to think of Chingachgook, Natty Bumpo’s companion and adoptive father in America’s first novel, James Fennimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans (1826). The anonymous artist has created a strong, proud, and slightly mythologizing image of considerable grandeur. The stance and proportions of the carving indicate that it may have been part of a larger decorative piece made to be viewed from slightly below. Or, it may have been related to tobacco sales. The three-tiered Lucite base is a later addition. Regardless of its provenance, the statue is an outstanding example of the carver’s art and a sympathetic, if somewhat idealized, portrait of a First American. Condition: Age cracks and some abrasion to the nose and chin. Dimensions: Base, 7” x 7” x 2”. Figure, 14”. Lance, 18”.