Norman Jimerson (Beaver Clan, Seneca Nation, born 1951)

In the 16th century, a constitution called the Great Law of Peace united the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk Nations as the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. The French called them Iroquois and the English called them the Five Nations. In 1714 the Tuscarora came from North Carolina to join the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, hence the English called them the Six Nations.

Oral tradition tells of an evil warrior named Ta-doh-da-hoh who tried to prevent Hiawatha from delivering a message of peace and brotherhood to the Mohawk Nation. He was said to have snakes coming out of his hair. Despite his murderous interventions, Ta-doh-da-hoh was defeated because Hiawatha followed his destiny to meet the Peacemaker with the Mohawk; thus the Confederacy was created. Seneca artist Norman Jimerson used traditional sculpting techniques to carve a deer antler with a depiction of Ta-doh-da-hoh as well as other symbols of Haudenosaunee culture that reaffirm their relationship with the earth