McKenney and Hall, 1836-1844 - NO-TIN. A CHIPPEWA CHIEF., from History of the Indian Tribes of North America - ca. 1842 - T-Shirt

This design reproduces a hand-coloured lithograph portrait of No-Tin, a Chippewa chief, shown in bust-length profile against a cream sheet.

Visual Elements & Composition

The portrait sits within a rectangular sheet in a vignette, so the figure fills the centre and the paper margins frame him. Warm cream and ivory dominate the background, with sage green and brick red picked out in the detailing. Black defines the features and the feathered headdress, which carries a peacock-eye feather. Red face paint with a white stripe draws the eye to the face. The printed words NO-TIN and A CHIPPEWA CHIEF run along the sheet, naming the sitter in plain capitals.

Meaning & Symbolism

The image comes from McKenney and Hall's History of the Indian Tribes of North America, published in the 1830s and 1840s. Thomas McKenney, Superintendent of Indian Trade, and James Hall commissioned original paintings of Native leaders who visited Washington, D.C., and the lithographs preserved those likenesses. Portraits like this one record a leader during a period of displacement and treaty negotiation, and they give an individual name and dignity at a time when such figures were often reduced to stereotype. The headdress, face paint and formal pose signal status and identity within the Chippewa community.

On the T-Shirt

A portrait built around a single bust-length figure suits the front of a tee, where the face sits at chest height and is seen up close as you move. The cream field and central figure read clearly at a glance and carry the detail of the original sheet onto the shirt.