This terra cotta Indian chief’s face (in full headdress) is one of a number of the cartouches that embellish the facade of the upper stories of the Cobb Building in downtown Seattle. Located in the downtown business district core, at 4th and University, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The building was completed and dedicated in 1910, it was designed especially for use by doctors and dentists, and featured high-speed elevators with extra gas and electrical service. These lovely cartouches were inspired by Edward S. Curtis a Washington photographer who began capturing images of Native Americans in the 1890s. In the pre-dawn light, I was drawn to the the large faces of the Indian chiefs with a purple light enhancing their facial features.
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He looks a wee bit fierce Madge, but he’s beautifully sculpted.
cartouches .. i love that word … and thats a great photo
very ornate.
That is wonderful!
Cool picture!! :)
Wow, the purple light really does bring out the facial features. Thanks for sharing this great photo and history of the building!
Nice- the sculptor did an excellent job!
Nicely done! I’ve had a long love for Curtis photos. It’s interesting to see that they have been used for other art.
I’ve seen the Chief(s), and they are terrfic.
What amazing detail! There is a wonderful exhibition of some of Curtis’ photos at the Tacoma Art Museum. xx
Where is that at, down by the Glass and History museums??
Quite interesting. Enjoyed learning the history of the bulding and the Indian head cartouches.
Great photo and info on the building and the photographer.
I feel like this is someone I know. Weird!
A beautiful piece of artwork and history.
Great capture! We have so many old buildings in town, I’m going to have to start looking up more…LOL My camera has sat idle for almost a week now. I feel I am paralyzed from the devistation that surrounds me. Sure hope this feeling leaves me soon…until then I have your and other blogs to fill me up! Thanks so much!