Wounded Buffalo Bull
1844
George Catlin was basically the 19th-century equivalent of a wildlife photographer on a mission to save the American West from being forgotten. Here, a massive buffalo bull stands defiant in the snow, arrows sticking out of its side and blood dripping onto the white ground—a brutal but honest depiction of the hunt. Catlin created this image for his famous 1844 portfolio, hoping to preserve the memory of the buffalo and Native American life before they vanished. It’s a stark, bloody reminder of the cost of survival on the frontier.
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