The National Park Service 1996 National Design Competition resulted in the selection of an overall design for the Aboriginal Memorial and a sculpture concept that included three, generic warriors on horseback in a plains pictographic style. Cutschall recommended an addition to the design concept to include a woman.

The woman embodies the humanity and the whole of the tribes that are being defended. The encampments of aboriginal tribes at the Little Bighorn were filled with warriors, women and children. The cavalry soldiers were not accompanied by their wives or small children. The woman is handing up a shield to a warrior wearing a red tail hawk headdress and whom she is fictionally related to, possibly her husband, father, or brother.

She is a reminder that even the bravest warrior came into this world through a woman. Her moon cycles are recalled in the thirteen conches of her belt. Women would hardly have been indifferent to the events of that day and in the long run were as deeply effected by the plains wars as were the men.

Women and children had lost their lives in previous attacks such as the massacre of the Washita that had also been led by Lt. Col. George A. Custer. Stories are still remembered of how women helped fallen warriors in battle. She is aware of her situation and runs to assist the warrior and hand him his equipment. Black Shawl, the wife of Crazy Horse, stood ready with hot meals, fresh horses, and replenished weaponry. After the battle, women actively participated in the ritual killing and blocking of human spirit in it's journey to the afterlife through the mutilation of corpses.

The theme of the Aboriginal Memorial is “Peace Through Unity“. The emblem on the shield is representative of the plains world view that reflects the quartered earth and cosmos. The circle in the center of the shield represents both the nation’s hoop and the source of life and renewal from the sun. In summary, the shield represents both the people and a world view that is being defended.

The scene is somewhat ambiguous in that the rider is holding a more modern weapon of the time, a rifle, and yet is receiving war equipment associated as an older psychological weapon that provided minimal physical protection. The ambiguity inherent in the scene raises the question of choice among individuals and societies who lack tolerance for one another.

The reined back horse and reverse position of the rider denote a sober second thought prior to pursuing the heat of battle. The technological contrast between shield and rifle simply points to the increasing efficiency of weapons capable of great injury and enormous capacity for destruction and the role we allow them to play in our history.

The central warrior calls attention to the immediacy of an attack situation and is seen obscured and protected by the body of the horse. He can be interpreted as mounting his horse on the run from the reverse side of the viewer or actually riding the horse in this position.

Plains horsemanship is legendary. In the aftermath of the plains wars, horsemanship and attacks would become the dramatized scenes of wild west shows. As a character he embodies both actual events and romanticized events that became the fiction of the West.

The horse emblems are in keeping with the largely invisible aspect of the rider. The image is of dragonflies connected by curvilinear power lines crossing over the rump and chest of the horse. The dragonfly is related to the fast moving and invisible aspects of wind. When painted on the war horse they imbue the horse with the qualities of swiftness and invisibility to the enemy. While not possible to illustrate in the sculpture, the iridescent color of dragonflies and the reflective light of its wings embody the wakan or magical qualities of this winged creature.

The warrior displays a sash recalling warrior societies in which members pledged to stake themselves to the ground and fight to the death. The horse blanket is a wolf hide, indicating the artist is present in the drawing. The warrior carries with him the coup stick, a high status object used for touching one’s enemy, not killing them. Great honour was bestowed on the warrior who was able to count coup on his enemy.

Great acts of bravery or self sacrifice were deemed more status than the “kill”. While these more ritualistic forms of plains skirmishes may seem archaic, they hold a teaching still relevant today about knowing your enemy rather than killing them.

The first warrior is the classic image of the plains warrior on horseback in full gallop with the tails of a full eagle feather headdress suggesting a great lord of the plains. He fires off an arrow from his bow, a weapon in common use at the Little Bighorn battle. His stature as a warrior is embodied in the headdress, with each feather representing a brave or generous deed for which he has been acknowledged.

His seasoned war horse displays old wounds that have been encircled. The rump is wrapped in curvilinear lightening symbols that lend both speed and power to the horse. These same marks are also found on the third warrior receiving the shield.

The horses tail is tied up so the enemy could not unseat the rider by pulling the horse down or to a stop. The horse’s eyes are emphasized, giving the horse focus, clarity and purpose in the battle. The overall image is of a warrior who is also a commander in chief leading other warriors into battle.

"Two Moons" of the Cheyenne and "Crazy Horse" of the Lakota’s were two such men at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Many other legendary war chiefs were also present such as "Gall", "Sitting Bull," and "Crow King".