This is an exceptional authentic original Western Great Lakes-Easter Plains pipe tomahawk dating to circa 1850-1860 from the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum Collection. The tomahawk was sold in the High Noon of Phoenix, Arizona Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum Collection sale. Roy Rogers was privileges to be closely related to some of the famous Native American Indians of old and worked with many of them in movies and on his television show. Like other major actors of the western showtimes like actor Glenn Ford, Roy and Dale amassed a large collection of rare and important Native American material such as this tomahawk. The piece was sold with the provenance that it was collected from the Eastern Sioux of Minnesota and used in the New Ulm Massacre of 1862, also known historically as “The Great Sioux Uprising”, unfortunately there is no remaining documentation to this effect. The current owner purchased the piece directly at the sale for nearly $10,000 where he was able to also befriend Roy and Dale’s son Roy Rogers Jr. The sale included such rare items as the Edward Bohlin saddle that sold for $386,500, the full mount of Trigger the horse for $266,500, Roy’s Bonneville for $254,500 and many more important objects. The pipe tomahawk is in excellent original condition and features a forged head with solid wood haft. The haft has a terrific original patina with light file branding and unique small saw tooth under carved cuts. Three-quarters of the way down the underside of the haft shows a pierced hole which holds a drop of two old black bear claws tied on with a small drop of tiny tarnished brass trade beads. The piece was sold in the black bear claws removed for the sale, to comply with California and Arizona restrictions, but were sent with the piece and re-attached by the owner. Provenance: From the famous Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum Collection; pictured in “The Mark Francis Collection of American Indians Art” (2009) book on page 94, figure 155. There is also an identical head to this example pictured in the John Baldwin book “Tomahawks, Pipe Axes of the American Frontier” (1995) and in the Daniel Hartzler & James Knowles book “Indian Tomahawks & Frontier Belt Axes” (1995). The tomahawk war club is truly an exceptional early Indian Wars era example with a large collectible value in its own right but is immensely more collectible due to it being owned by the most famous singing cowboy and western legends of all time, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. The piece measures overall 28.5”L with the axe head being 7.5”W and 2.75”L across the blade. For a complete representation of condition and for additional images please call 800-686-4216. It is the buyer’s responsibility to view each image and preview the item to determine condition.