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Show Wooden Indian Carving Revived by Newsman BOISE, Idaho The wooden Indians Indi-ans that once were displayed before be-fore tobacco stores in nearly every small town in America are staging a comeback. Thayne Robertson, ex-newspaperman, is reviving an old American art and creating a new business by carving the life sized wooden savages. sav-ages. At first a hobby, seven years ago he gave up his newspaper work to devote his full time to carving. Some years ago a survey showed around 600 wooden Indians on display dis-play in the United States. Fewer than 300 are supposed to be around today, except for those in museums and private collections. Priced at from $100 to $2,500, the Indians sell to clubs, cigar stores, sporting goods shops, museums and individual collectors faster than Robertson can get them carved. Though wooden Indians are regarded re-garded as dyed in the wool American, Ameri-can, they originated with London merchants early in the 17th century. Most British craftsmen, never having hav-ing seen an Indian, made their red men as black as the ace of spades. The first wooden Indian shipped to America is thought to have appeared ap-peared around 1770, in Lancaster, Pa. |