This portrait by Charles Bird King is one of few of his portraits to have survived the Smithsonian fire of 1865. This painting, done from life when Vann was 25 years old, is one of fewer than a dozen accurate images of a Cherokee prior to the invention of photography. A leader of the Cherokee during the post-removal era, David Vann (1800-1863) served as treasurer of the Cherokee Nation under Chief John Ross.

From the exhibition: After Removal: Rebuilding the Cherokee Nation, August 25, 2017 - January 21, 2018.
Curated by Dr. Duane King & Dr. Natalie Panther, 2017.