In Harper’s Weekly July 24, 1886, Farny’s illustration A Cheyenne Courtship made the cover. It can be viewed below:
In 1892, Farny created a very similar, more refined painting of the same image. It’s currently named The Musician or The Indian Playing Flute, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was originally called A Cheyenne Courtship. This image was posted to the Frick Archives:
The musical instrument used by Farny’s musician might have been modeled on a Flageolet-like instrument he collected while visiting the Sioux in 1881. An article from the Cincinnati Enquirer describes Farny’s instrument:
Alternatively, according to newspaper reports, following his 1884 Missouri Trip in Montana, Farny and Cincinnati reporter W.F. Shanks were reportedly in Colorado for up to a couple of weeks. It’s unclear what they were doing there, but perhaps visiting the Cheyenne was something they did.
