The Last of the Mohicans, cover illustration

In this painting and in most of Wyeth’s other depictions of Native Americans, the artist’s depiction of body paint and other tribal signs and symbols was mostly drawn from print sources which proliferated in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Illustrators who consulted these sources—invariably published by non-native artists and authors—in order to make paintings that were then reproduced, often perpetuated inaccurate imagery and shaped a particular view of native culture.

Originally this painting was of the same size (roughly 40 x 32 inches) and vertical orientation as other paintings from Wyeth’s Last of the Mohicans series. The image would have had space on the canvas for a title block. Wyeth often would cut down a cover illustration after its reproduction to remove the title block in the hopes of making the painting more attractive to buyers.