John David Brcin originally planned this work to mark the entrance of the newly built Joslyn Memorial (later renamed Joslyn Art Museum) in 1931. Though Brcin’s commission for the institution resulted in eight façade panels still visible today, his proposal for a Native American warrior on horseback did not convince the building committee. A small plaster model by Brcin, donated to the museum in 1963, became the only remnant of this project. It is based on this prototype that sculptor Matthew Placzek was commissioned by Joslyn to realize Brcin’s design. The present 5,000-pound sculpture was modeled in clay in Placzek’s Omaha studio, before being cast in bronze in a Colorado foundry in 2008. The sculpture became the signature work of art in the Joslyn sculpture garden, was moved to its current location in North Downtown in 2023 on loan from Joslyn Art Museum.