179: A 19TH CENTURY LAKOTA SIOUX BEADED KNIFE SHEATH

The rawhide sheath with glass beads, metal cones and remnants of dyed horsehair, circa 1885. The knife blade is stamped ''Thomas Wilson / Shear Steel / Sheffield England,'' identifying it as an English-made blade from the mid to late 19th century. Sheffield cutlery was widely traded in North America, and such knives were frequently acquired and adapted by Native peoples.
Knife measures 12.75 inches long and sheath is 10.5 x 3 inches.
The belt loop or thong is a replacement, a short stretch of glass bead trim is lost on the right side, five lost metal cones, loss of horse hair.
Provenance: The estate of a Wyoming collector.
$800 - $1,200