The Old Arrow Maker

thingiverse

Edmonia Lewis's sculpture, Old Arrow Maker, depicts a scene from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha. In the scene, Minnehaha weaves mats while her father crafts jasper arrowheads. They greet Hiawatha, whose presence is signaled by his gift of a deer for marriage. Lewis often depicted Native Americans, perhaps drawn to Hiawatha's Ojibwa heritage like her own. The sculpture may symbolize Lewis's desire for reconciliation post-Civil War, mirroring Hiawatha's wish for forgotten feuds and healed wounds.