This brown-painted sculpture is an artistic representation of Keokuk, an American Indian male. He is dressed in a loincloth and a full headdress, which extends to the middle of his back. He wears moccasins on his feet; the tops are folded down. The figure wears a necklace of teeth or claws on his bare chest and looks straight ahead. He holds a blanket or robe over his left shoulder. It is trapped in the crook of his bent arm, and drapes down on the left side; its back corner brushes the ground. Keokuk holds a long pipe in his right hand. The bowl is cupped in his hand, and the stem of the pipe rests on his shoulder. He stands with most of his weight on his left foot. His right foot is further back and he is beginning to put weight on the ball of the foot as though stepping.
This was a working model for the monument to Chief Keokuk in Rand Park, Keokuk, Iowa. This is Walker’s best-known work. Keokuk (1767-1848) was a Sauk leader who wanted to remain on traditional lands, yet was opposed to joining and fighting with Black Hawk.