McKenney and Hall, 1836-1844 - SE-LOC-TA, A CREEK CHIEF - 1836 - T-Shirt

This design reproduces a hand-coloured 1836 lithographic portrait of Se-Loc-Ta, a Creek chief, shown as a bust in a red turban and blue blanket.

Visual Elements & Composition

The portrait sits on a vertical plate framed by an oval medallion, and the figure's profile is set within a silver-toned oval, as if pressed into a commemorative medal. Cornflower blue and brick red dominate the colour, with warm skin tan and charcoal black defining the features and linework. Cream paper fills most of the field, giving the image the soft, aged tone of an early printed plate. The printed caption reads SE-LOC-TA and A CREEK CHIEF, with the publisher line along the base.

Meaning & Symbolism

The portrait comes from History of the Indian Tribes of North America, compiled by Thomas McKenney and James Hall. The lithographs were drawn from oil portraits commissioned for the War Department's Indian Gallery, and the project recorded tribal leaders during the era of Indian Removal. The formal framing and the red turban and blue blanket present Se-Loc-Ta as a leader engaged in diplomacy, while the record itself preserves the faces of nations under heavy political pressure. It stands among the most significant ethnographic records of the period.

Where the Portrait Meets the Shirt

An oval medallion suits a chest-sized print, so the portrait reads as a single image at a glance across the front of the shirt. The cream field and fine line detail carry well on a tee that is worn close and seen at conversation distance, letting the viewer step closer to read the caption and the faces of the printed record.