Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 154-157(1999).

A "New'' Choris Watercolor

THOMAS BLACKBURN, Department of Geography and Anthropology, Calif. State Polytechnic Univ., Pomona, CA 91766.

Louis Choris was one of the most talented artists of California Native American life during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Recently, a previously unknown watercolor by Choris was discovered at the Estonian History Museum. This highlights the importance of searching for further undiscovered treasures in European repositories.

XN 1995,1 visited the Estonian History Museum Louis (Loggin Andrevitch) Choris (1795-1828) in Tallkin in conjunction with ongoing research on was arguably the most gifted of the various artists overseas museum collections of Califomia Indian that often accompanied the numerous Russian, Brit­ artifacts (Blackburn and Hudson 1990). While ish, Spanish, and French expedkions that visited there, 1 inquired about original artworks depicting Califomia in the late eighteenth and early nine­ Native Americans, and was informed that the mu­ teenth centuries. Certainly, his drawings and - seum did indeed have a number of such pictures, tercolors depicting mission life (e.g., Fig. 2) prob­ and that two of them apparently were representa­ ably have been reproduced more frequently than tions of Califomia Indians. When I expressed an those created by any other contemporary visitor. interest in seeing these, I was regretfully informed Choris was bom in Russia, of German descent (as that the art collection was ki storage and temporari­ were many others who were to play significant roles ly inaccessible. After returning home, I wrote to in both the Russian Navy and the Russian-Ameri­ the museum staff requesting further information on can Company), and was only 20 when he boarded the art collection, but never received a reply (which the brig Rurik as the official artist of the Roman- I subsequently learned was sent but lost in the zoff expedkion (Mabr 1932; Henry 1984). This mail). 1 temporarily shelved the matter, but re­ privately financed venture, which had the dual solved to carry out further research at a later date. goals of discovering a northem passage across the In January 2000,1 was finally able to contact North American contkient and exploring the North­ Curator Heikki Pauts at the Estonian History Mu­ west Coast, consisted of a single small ship, with a seum by email, and was delighted to immediately crew of 20 seamen, under the command of Lieuten­ receive not only a list of the museum's artworks ant Otto von . The exploring party, al­ depictkig Native Americans, but electronic images though modest ki size, included a number of excep­ of the two pictures of California Indians as well. tionally qualified men, among them the noted natu­ While one of these (EAM G-3063) turned out to be ralist , surgeon Frederick a later composite engravkig of two plates originally Eschscholz, and artist . Several differ­ published in Baegert's (1772, 1989) account of ent accounts of the three-year voyage were even- Baja California (W. M. Mathes, personal commu­ tualty published (Choris 1822, 1826; Mabr 1932; nication 2000), the other (EAM G-2878) was clear­ Kotzebue 1967; Chamisso 1986). ly a previously unknown watercolor by the talented Choris created a number of striking sketches artist Louis Choris, depicting a neophyte couple re­ and watercolors during the Rurik" s brief stay in the siding at Mission San Francisco in 1816 (Fig. 1). San Francisco Bay area, some of which were later A "NEW" CHORIS WATERCOLOR 155

Fig. 1. WatercolOT (EAM G-2878) atttibuted to Louis Choris entkled "Indians from New Albion." Reproduc­ tion courtesy of the Estonian History Museum, . reproduced as lithographs in the artist's own ac­ artworks stiU remauied to provide a glimpse of mis­ count of the expedkion (Choris 1822). However, sion neophyte life. most of the originals were dispersed after Choris' The existence of another previously unknown untimely death ki 1828, and the corpus of his Choris watercolor is obviously welcome news to known depictions of Califomia was not expanded anyone interested in life in early Califomia, since until the relatively recent publication of a few ad- the picture is a significant addition to the body of dkional, previously unpublished Choris sketches work produced by one of the most talented of the and watercolors by Galvin and Howell (Campa y expeditionary artists. However, it has the addition­ Cos 1964). When Drawn from Life (Kroeber et al. al significance of suggesting that further treasures 1977) appeared some years later, the total scope of may lie as yet undiscovered in European reposi­ Choris' legacy seemed clear, and ethnohistorians tories waiting to be found, and that the methodical were sknply grateful that a number of his surviving search of overseas archives, museums, and collec- 156 JOURNAL OF CALIFORNIA AND GREAT BASIN ANTHROPOLOGY

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Fig. 2. Published Choris lithograph showing a group of neophytes at Mission San Francisco, 1816 (Choris 1822). tions has the potential to significantly expand our Pomona, provided technical assistance in obtaining basic ethnohistoric data base. The limits of that optimal quality images. I am grateful to each and every one of them. data base have not as yet been reached, and the technological and communicational revolution that REFERENCES is presently taking place has provided us with im­ Baegert, Jacob portant new research tools for expanding those 1772 Nacbrichten von der Amerikaniscben Hal- limits in unprecedented ways. Let us begin to use binsel Califomien. Mannheim: Churfurstl. them. Hof-und Academie-Bucbdrucbteren. 1989 Noticias de la peninsula americana de Cali­ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS fornia. Notas inttoductorias por W. Mi­ I am greatly indebted to Curator Heikki Pauts and chael Mathes, Raul Antonio Cotta, traduc- DkectOT Toomas Tamla of the Estonian History Muse­ cion del aleman por Pedro R. Hendrichs. um, Tallinn, for their hospitality and generous assis­ La Paz: Gobiemo del Estado de Baja Cali­ tance under difficult circumstances, and for their kind fomia Sur. permission to reproduce the Choris watercolor under Blackbum, Thomas, and Travis Hudson discussion. I would also like to thank the following 1990 Time's Flotsam: Overseas Collections of people as well: W. Michael Mathes, Curator of Mexi- Califomia Indian Material Culture. Menio cana at the Sutto Library, was most belpftil in identi­ Park: Ballena Press. fying the origkial source of the Baja California engrav­ ing and providing significant additional data; Jean Campa y Cos, Manuel de la Beckner and James Otto, Special Collections, Hon- 1964 A Journal of ExplOTations Northward Along nold/Mudd Library, Claremont Colleges, gave permis­ the Coast fromMontere y in the Year 1775. sion to reproduce a plate from Choris' Voyage pit- With illusttations in original colors by Lou­ toresque autour du mond (1822), and provided the is ChOTis. Edited by John Galvin. San Fran­ scanned image of k included herein as Figure 2; and cisco: John Howell Books. Sam Hay, Instmctional Technology and Academic Chamisso, Adelbert Computing, Califomia State Polytechnic University, 1986 A Voyage Around the World with the Ro- A "NEW" CHORIS WATERCOLOR 157

manzov E:q)lOTing Expedkion in the Years west Coast, 1741-1841. Seattle: University 1815-1818 in the Brig Rurik, Captain Otto of Washington Press. von Kotzebue. Translated and edited by Kotzebue, Otto von Henry Kratz. Honolulu: University of Ha­ 1967 Voyage of Discovery into the South Sea and waii Press. Beering's Straits. New York: DeCapo. Choris, Louis Kroeber, Theodwa, Albert Elsasser, and Robert Heizer 1822 Voyage pittOTesque autour du monde. Par­ 1977 Drawn From Life: Califomia Indians in Pen is: Impr. de Firmki Didot. and Bmsb. Socorro: Ballena Press. 1826 Vues et paysages des regions equinoxiales. Mabr, August Paris: P. Renouard. 1932 The Visit of the "Rurik" to San Francisco Henry, John F. in 1816. Stanford: Stanford University 1984 Early Maritime Artists of the Pacific North­ Press.