ticketsMember | Make a donation

End of the Trail

Founder Cast by Roman Bronze Works
1918, cast 1918
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 767
This depiction of an exhausted Native man, slumped on his windblown pony, is an evocative symbol of the destructive impact of Euro-American settler colonialism on Indigenous peoples. Based on Fraser’s firsthand experiences growing up in Dakota Territory in the 1880s, he intended his sculpture—rich in narrative detail—to comment on the confinement of Native Americans on reservation land. The sculptor earned acclaim when he displayed a monumental plaster version of the work at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco.

Read a Native Perspective on this work.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: End of the Trail
  • Artist: James Earle Fraser (American, Winona, Minnesota 1876–1953 Westport, Connecticut)
  • Founder: Cast by Roman Bronze Works
  • Date: 1918, cast 1918
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Bronze
  • Dimensions: 33 x 26 x 8 3/4 in. (83.8 x 66 x 22.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of the American Wing Fund, Mr. and Mrs. S. Parker Gilbert Gift, Morris K. Jesup and 2004 Benefit Funds, 2010
  • Object Number: 2010.73
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

Audio

Cover Image for 4578. End of the Trail

4578. End of the Trail

0:00
0:00
We're sorry, the transcript for this audio track is not available at this time. Please email info@metmuseum.org to request a transcript for this track.

More Artwork

More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
The Moqui Prayer for Rain, Hermon Atkins MacNeil American, Bronze, American
The Moqui Prayer for Rain
Hermon Atkins MacNeil
Fonderia Nelli
1895–96; cast ca. 1897
A Chief of the Multnomah Tribe, Hermon Atkins MacNeil American, Bronze, American
A Chief of the Multnomah Tribe
Hermon Atkins MacNeil
Roman Bronze Works
1903; cast ca.1907
Appeal to the Great Spirit, Cyrus Edwin Dallin American, Bronze, American
Appeal to the Great Spirit
Cyrus Edwin Dallin
Gorham Manufacturing Company
1913; cast ca. 1916
The Sun Vow, Hermon Atkins MacNeil American, Bronze, American
The Sun Vow
Hermon Atkins MacNeil
Roman Bronze Works
1899, cast 1919
New Frontiers, James Earle Fraser American, Bronze
New Frontiers
James Earle Fraser
1952

Related Content

Perspectives

Articles, audio, and video from The Met's online magazine.

Timeline of Art History

Entries from The Met's art encyclopedia.

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.