South Dakota Goldback® Gallery

1 - One Goldback

Pax (Peace)

In her first appearance on a Goldback series, Pax, or Peace, is featured on the South Dakota 1 Goldback Denomination. She is depicted in this design as a Lakota Native American woman wearing traditional regalia and hoop dancing as demonstrated in person to the artist during her time researching in the state. The inspiration for this virtue of peace came directly from the speech and demonstration given by the Lakota performer that day. She explained that she had made her own regalia and that it represented her name, tribe, family, heritage and stories as well as her own personal passions. She further explained that the name of her heritage, Lakota, as well as the nearby Nakota and Dakota are the words in their similar native languages that they call themselves and they mean “The Friendly Ones”. The artist was deeply inspired by this message and a more generally known translation of “Alliance of Friends” was used to represent this sentiment on a banner toward the bottom of the 1 Goldback Denomination. 

While demonstrating the hoop dance, this woman described the importance of finding and creating peace with everything around her by treating them as friends and relatives, and stressed that true peace can come from doing so with every person no matter their creed, race, age, or other differences, as well as by including animals, plants, and even the elements in this same fashion. In this piece, the viewer can see many representations of these impressions, from the sacred Bear Butte, or “Mato Paha” formation in the background to the animals that surround the Virtue of Peace.

In addition to the traditional cancega drum depicted with the Sacred Hoop or Medicine wheel,  the careful viewer will also see the representation of the seven sacred elements that were explained to the artist: land, air, water, rocks, animals, plants, and fire.  Also, in the bottom right corner one can see the Prairie Crocus, or Pasque flower, appearing as a symbol of the cyclical seasons of life, in theme with the symbolism of the hoops and cancega. It is known for being the first plant to bloom in the spring, and to live out all the cycles of its life in a matter of two weeks, so much like our short lives on this earth with many generations before us on whose shoulders we stand. In many ways, peace is a choice that comes from being in harmony with those people and things around us, just as the Lakota woman explained to the artist. Through the words at Pax’s feet, the South Dakota 1 Goldback Denomination echoes her words and invites all who see it to “Seek Peace”.

5 - Five Goldbacks

Industria (Industry)

The next Virtue in the series is Industria, meaning Industry. She makes her first appearance on a Goldback Design as a woman walking through the fields of a farm, surrounded by items such as corn, honey, hay, wheat, sunflowers, pumpkins, and many others. Behind her are silos full of grain, one of which is being filled by an auger and has old glory painted on it. With one hand on her hat and her arm looped through a basket full of corn, her sundress billows in the warm late summer breeze. The careful observer will also note the smile on Industria’s face as she caresses the leaves of the corn stalks next to her. As she walks toward a cornucopia full of harvest, she clearly is finding joy in the labor of her hands, just as this denomination exhorts us to do through its inscription, “Abound in Good Works”.

This denomination was inspired by the artist’s travels through the plains of South Dakota along Interstate 90, from Rapid City, heading west. This area has a rich history of early settlers and homesteaders who struggled to grow crops and, despite many of their neighbors giving up in those days, those who worked hard and exemplified the qualities of industry in the area were eventually able to reap abundant harvests. As a result, South Dakota is now one of the top producers in the United States for corn, soybeans, and wheat, annually selling over $10 billion worth of agricultural products in recent years.

There is deep symbolism and history behind both the sunflower and the honey depicted in this Goldback denomination. Sunflowers are currently used for oil, birdseed, and human consumption, and have a history of being used medicinally as well. In this rendition, they indicate that hard work brings credibility. They encourage us to stand tall, to look toward and pay obeisance to the source of our blessings, just as the sunflowers look toward the sun each day. They are a representation of an increase in abundance and seed with which to plant in subsequent harvests. Their presence in this denomination encourages the viewer to look towards light and truth and teach posterity to do the same.

Along a similar vein, honey is the result of many generations of industry. It is a long standing symbol for both working together and hard work paying off. In many ways, honey represents the results of living the American dream. In addition to the honey bee being South Dakota’s state insect, honey bees are long-time symbols of the work that brings us to each next harvest. Their work and pollination allows for plants to produce fruit, and without them, the world would starve. This denomination invites everyone to follow the example of the honey bees and to use the spirit of industry to bring about the next harvest, but to also enjoy the benefit of the current one as well.

10 - Ten Goldbacks

Harmonia (Harmony)

The Virtue Harmonia, or Harmony, makes her debut on the South Dakota 10 Goldback Denomination. Accompanied by the phrase “Live in Harmony”, Harmonia appears as a modern interpretation of the Greco-Roman Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, fertility, and young women. As such, she is surrounded by many symbols of those things. She holds a drawn bow, with an arrow on the string, ready to release. Behind her, a crescent moon rises in a cloudy sky, a symbol of healing and light in the darkness. Around her are depictions of Canada geese, a pronghorn antelope, mule deer antler sheds, and ring-necked pheasants, representing just some of the animals that make South Dakota a world renowned hunting destination in the United States.

She wears a belt that has diamonds and stylized feathers at her waist. The diamonds represent the incredible value of women to humankind. The feathers are representative of two things. First, they represent each of the types of fowl that can be hunted in South Dakota; both ground dwelling birds like quail, turkey, and the state bird, the ring-necked pheasant; and migrating birds like ducks and geese. However, second, and deeper still, these feathers also lend from the Greek tradition that fowl feathers are sacred and they are placed at her waist above her womb to indicate the sacred nature and beauty of both womanhood and childbearing.

Harmonia is an excellent representation of ecological balance. As a classical representation of both the wilderness, or ecological interactions, and the hunt, this Artemis inspired virtue stands as a bastion of how the hunt is a natural part of an ecosystem and how best practices of wildlife conservation and harvesting need to both be present for a healthy ecosystem to thrive. South Dakota strives for this type of balance in its policy and practice. In a similar way, the hunting dog with Harmonia, who also has a collar of laurel leaves, represents a resonance of purpose and execution of will through direction and obedience to direction. 

Her bow and arrows have special significance here as well. The bow is a tool that requires much practice and mastery in order to be accurate and proficient. It requires discipline in practice and intent in its use. The arrow represents direction, focus, and speed. If the arrow is true it will fly correctly and, when combined with true aim, will hit its target. When these two symbols are used together, they embody a sense of dedication and focus that results in a capable effort and successful endeavor. They are the harmony between practice and intent, and result in the victory of obtaining one’s goal. That victory is represented by the crown of laurel leaves that wreath Harmonia’s head.

25 - Twenty-Five Goldbacks

Laurea (Honor)

The final new Virtue for the South Dakota 25 Goldback Denomination is Laurea, or Honor. This illustration was largely inspired by one of the legends told about Maiden’s Isle on Lake Kampeska, one of South Dakota’s glacial lakes. There are many legends and stories about many of the glacial lakes, but this story is about a young woman named Minnecotah who was in love with a hunter from another area. In the legend, many local men wanted to marry her, but she was waiting for her true love from Wahpeton. In order to delay their advances, she told them that she would marry the man who could throw a stone the farthest into the lake. 

The men did so for days, with Minnecotah encouraging them and delaying further by saying that she could not tell who had thrown the farthest because of the waves. For a while this worked and an island began to form in the lake. Then, realizing that the contest was a ruse, her suitors kidnapped her and placed her on the island they had created, giving her no food, in an attempt to force her to either choose one of the suitors or die of starvation. Minnecotah decided to remain true to her love and honor their commitment to each other, deciding to not choose one of the suitors. While she was living on the island, waiting for her true love, a white pelican brought her fish and berries to help her survive. Eventually, the hunter that she loved returned and took her away to live with him. When the suitors from her tribe discovered that she was gone, they believed that the sun god had sent the white pelican to take her away.

For this reason Laurea stands on a stone island in the lake, representing Maiden’s Isle from Lake Kampeska. A pelican can be seen flying above her and raspberries can be seen in the foreground. Also present in this illustration are many elements from the Lakota legend of the flute, the legend of how the porcupine got its quills,  and the legend of the dream catcher as told by the Aktá Lakota Museum & Cultural Center. She encourages the viewer not only to honor their commitments and keep their word, but to praise the Maker of all, even through one’s trials, by the accompanied inscription “Honor to the Giver”.

50 - Fifty Goldbacks

Libertas (Liberty)

The capstone Virtue for locations in the United States, Libertas, is always represented on the 50 Goldback Denomination. In the South Dakota Series Design, Libertas is inspired by the Lady Freedom statue in D.C., lending from the symbolism of that depiction. She holds a bared sword in her right hand before a shield in her left. Both are raised, indicating a readiness to protect her own. The shield bears her name with a depiction of the South Dakota flag’s sun above and below reads the inscription that “Under God the People Rule”, which is South Dakota’s state motto. Her crested helmet along with her shield and sword come from symbols commonly associated with the Roman goddesses Minerva and Bellona. 

At Liberty's feet the skull of an American bison can be seen, painted with the Lakota Sioux Medicine Wheel, meant to represent all the native people in South Dakota, the Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota. It is in the shape of a circle and the directional lines and feathers that accompany it together stand for a symbol of hope and healing for those who seek it. The bison’s skull also represents the sacred nature of how this particular animal’s life would historically be given and its entire body would be used completely to become the source of life for many others. These symbols are placed atop a depiction of a freesia flower cluster, which stands for peace, friendship, and innocence. 

Below Libertas is a depiction of a person fishing for walleye, the state fish, against the backdrop of the cliffs and water of Palisades State Park. Behind Liberty’s right shoulder is an illustration of the South Dakota State Capitol behind which the famous Needles formations, located in the Black Hills within Custer State Park, can also be seen. Above her a representation of Mount Rushmore boasts South Dakota as the home of such a major symbol for America, Freedom and hope. Surrounded by these symbols, Liberty exhorts us, as always to “Stand Fast in Liberty”.