On the Trails of the Iroquois

For four centuries the Iroquois and their culture have engaged the European imagination and have decisively shaped the popular perception of the Indian. They have been praised as sage orators and prudent diplomats and dreaded for their cruelty in warfare. The pre-eminent position of women in their s [...]
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For four centuries the Iroquois and their culture have engaged the European imagination and have decisively shaped the popular perception of the Indian. They have been praised as sage orators and prudent diplomats and dreaded for their cruelty in warfare. The pre-eminent position of women in their society made them precursors of feminism, while the men's hairstyles became a trademark of rebellious youth. Based on historical paintings and drawings, rare ethnographic objects, and extraordinary examples of contemporary Iroquois art, this richly illustrated volume recounts the often troubled history of the Iroquois, which shaped and strengthened their pride in their culture and their ongoing struggle for recognition of their rights as an indigenous people.Contents: On the Trails of the Iroquois; Tracking the Iroquois through the centuries; Origins; Foundations of existence; Longhouse and league; New worlds: Trade, missions, and cultural contact since the seventeenth century; Revolution and revitalisation: The War of Independence and its aftermath; Reservation life and adaptation in the nineteenths and early twentieth centuries; Autonomy and activism in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.