Sioux Polychrome Parfleche and Hide Bag from the William H. Jensen Collection (ca 1887-1979), Minnesota 

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Sep 25, 2015 - Sep 26, 2015

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• Lot Description
  Sioux Polychrome Parfleche and Hide Bag from the William H. Jensen Collection (ca 1887-1979), Minnesota 
  
  parfleche painted on both sides with differing geometric designs in colors of red, blue, yellow, and green with thin back outlining; hide fringe, base, and throat are sinew-sewn, length 24 in. x width 10.25 in.
  early 20th century
  
  William H. Jensen (ca 1887-1979)
  
  In 1933, while laying gravel for his driveway, W. H. Jensen discovered bone fragments and a stone tool, prompting him to investigate further.  After several hours of sifting through the gravel, he found more bone fragments belonging to a man dated roughly 9,000 years old, a date confirmed by the lithic flaked tools discovered at the site.  The Browns Valley Man was a Paleo-Indian, considered to be of the first people to arrive in the Americas from Asia (though debate on their exact routes and dates is ongoing).  During that same time it is believed that Browns Valley was a Paleo-Indian burial site, one of few in the country and the only one in Minnesota. In 1934, it was investigated by A. E. Jenks, University of Minnesota.
  
  Jensen was born in 1887 on an island in Lake Traverse (Jensen's island) and was hunting for arrowheads in the family garden by age 5.  He began his vocation as a teacher to the Sisseton Indians of South Dakota which lead to many other business adventures.  Throughout his careers, he was known in the community for buying ethnographic material his entire life.
  
  William H. Jensen (1886-1960)
  
  Jensen was born in St. Paul, MN. By age 7, he was hunting for arrowheads in the family garden on Jensen’s Island in Lake Traverse, near Browns Valley, MN. As a young adult Jensen became committed to understanding the heritage of the Browns Valley area. He worked first as a teacher; later, as a worker and then owner of the Browns Valley grain elevator; and finally, as the owner of the first TV tower in Browns Valley. Despite his busy schedule and his family life, Jensen always found time to work as an amateur archaeologist. Before long he was known for both his excavations and his ethnographic collection.
  
  Jensen’s enthusiasm for anthropology and his discerning eye led to an important accidental discovery. In 1933, when a load of gravel was delivered to his grain elevator, Jensen discovered human bone fragments and a stone tool buried in the gravel. He hurried to the pit, which was located within the city limits in the Plateau Addition of Browns Valleys. With the help of the driver he found the site and began carefully sifting through more gravel, where he discovered additional bones and some flaked-stone tools.Jensen contacted Albert E. Jenks from the University of Minnesota and, in time, dating tests confirmed that the skeletal material was approximately 9,000 years old. This Paleo-Indian skeleton has become known as the Browns Valley Man, most likely he was one of the first Indians to arrive in the Americas from Asia. Brown’s Valley is one of the oldest sites in North America." 
  
  Provenance: Property of a Minnesota Collector; Ex William H. Jensen (1886-1960) Collection

  Condition

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