Ceremonies

An Ute Snake Dance

The Ute Indians loved to dance. They had many different dances. Some, like the Sun Dance were part of religious ceremonies. Others were social dances. These included the Circle Dance, Dog Dance, and Coyote Dance.

Photo: Colorado Historical Society

Their Own Words

"Our musical instruments—drums, rattles, and whistles—were all made by the men of the tribe…. Hand drums, the kind used at many of our dances, were small and were made by stretching a skin over a frame and fastening thongs at the back so the drum could be held in one hand and struck with the other…. Our whistles were made of eagle or wild turkey bones hollowed out and notched in such a way as to make different whistling sounds."

Source: Althea Bass, The Arapaho Way: A Memoir of an Indian Boyhood [by Carl Sweezy] (New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1966), p. 34.

An Ute Bear Dance

The Bear Dance was the Ute's most important dance. It was held each year at the Ute’s spring camp meeting. Spring was a time to renew friendships, to visit relatives, and welcome new children born into the tribe. The Bear Dance took place outdoors in a big corral lined with brush about chest high. Music was provided by men rubbing notched sticks over a wooden box, which made a sound like bears growling. The dance took place over 4 days, lasting longer each day.

Photo: Colorado Historical Society

Their Own Words

"[The spring camp meeting was] a time for a new beginning, the starting of new friendships and renewal of old friendships. A time of rememberance of long ago days, and long ago friends and relatives. A time of giving thanks to the Creator for the time of survival during the harsh and cold winters."

Source: Annabelle W. Eagle, quoted in Jan Pettit, Utes: The Mountain People (Boulder: Johnson Publishing, 1990), p. 93.

Painting Of a Sun Dance Lodge

The sun dance was a religious ceremony of the plains Indians. It was held once a year when the Cheyenne or Arapaho bands came together. It took 8 days to complete. The ceremony was held in a special lodge open to the sky. It included pretend battles fought by warrior societies, singing, and dancing. In one part of the ceremony, the dancer had to free himself from a rope attached to his chest by wooden pins.

Photo: Colorado Historical Society

Their Own Words

"All through the long summer day I walked about the pole, praying to all the spirits, and crying aloud to the sun and the earth, and all the animals and birds to help me. Each time when I came to the end of the rope I threw myself back against it, and pulled hard. The skin of my breast stretched out as wide as your hand....All day long I walked in this way. The sun blazed down like fire. I had no food, and did not drink; for so I had been instructed."

Source: A young Cheyenne, quoted in Donald J. Berthrong, The Southern Cheyennes (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1963), p. 44.