Seven lost wax casts were made during Remington’s lifetime, including this one, and differ quite a bit from one another. The head of the Indian takes diverse poses, and the shape and position of the horse’s tail vary, indicating that Remington lavished individual attention on each wax model while experimenting with texture and form. Lost wax casts are more often cast in one piece than sand casts, but in this case the raised arm was cast separately, and the join made after casting is visible below the elbow. The base was also cast as a separate piece. About 18 lifetime casts of this work—11 sand casts and seven lost wax—are known to have been made before Remington destroyed the model because of his dissatisfaction with the production quality.

From the exhibition:Frontier to Foundry: the Making of Small Bronze Sculpture in the Gilcrease Collection, December 2014 - March 2015.
Ann Boulton Young, Associate Conservator for the Gilcrease Museum, 2014.

This bronze, cast number 4, is a lifetime cast. There is no ledger date for the sale of this cast. However, it was probably cast between 1906 and 1908 because casts number 1-3, 5, and 6 sold during this period. The raised arm was cast separately and attached after casting.

Ann Boulton Young, Associate Conservator for the Gilcrease Museum, 2018