Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

September 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction

Sat, Sep 19, 2026 11:00AM EDT
  2026-09-19 11:00:00 2026-09-19 11:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : September 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/september-2026-vernacular-photo-history-auction-24380
Our September 2026 auction is anchored by two remarkable private collections, together making up about half the sale, alongside a broader selection of consignments spanning early photography, Civil War material, and vernacular imagery. The Soffer Collection, built with an eye for rarity and historical significance, is particularly strong in vernacular portraiture, Native American photographs, and Iowa Civil War imagery. The Palmer, Massachusetts collection, much of it found at Brimfield, centers on maker-marked daguerreotypes from the golden age of the American daguerreian studio.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 143

Cabinet Card, Crow Eagle, Barry, Bismarck and Standing Rock

Estimate: $300 - $500
Starting Bid
$150

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $5
$100 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
Crow Eagle stands at the center of this cabinet card in a full-length studio portrait made by D.F. Barry, operating out of Bismarck and Standing Rock in Dakota Territory, almost certainly in the 1880s. Barry was among the most prolific and significant photographers of Plains Indian leaders during that era, and this image belongs firmly within his well-documented body of work at Standing Rock Agency. The mount bears his distinctive ornate reverse imprint.

Crow Eagle wears a full eagle-feather war bonnet trailing well past the shoulders, a dark blanket wrapped around his lower body, and a light-colored shirt with a beaded or quilled necklace at the throat. He holds a pipe tomahawk across his body with both hands and stands beside a rustic branch-and-post studio prop, with a painted architectural backdrop visible behind him and hay scattered at his feet.

Crow Eagle was a Blackfoot Sioux leader associated with Standing Rock Agency. He appears in multiple Barry photographs from this period, and his sessions with Barry form part of a larger systematic effort to document tribal leadership during the reservation era.

The reverse bears the printed imprint: "Barry, Photographer, Bismarck and Standing Rock, D.T." The subject's name "Crow Eagle" is printed in serif type within a cartouche at the bottom of the front mount.

From the collection of James Lee Soffer

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