The Rose Stealie

14”d x 1 1/8”

Basswood 2025

The lightning bolt skull was first created in 1973 by Owsley “Bear” Stanley, the band’s sound engineer and artist Bob Thomas. The original red and blue circle split by the 13 point lightning bolt with a skull below was created as a stencil to mark all of the equipment the Dead traveled with. There was a lot of it!

In 1976 the design was modified for the Steal Your Face album cover and became known thereafter as the Stealie. Stanley Mouse and Alton Kelly adapted the concept into their artwork in the mid 70s. This piece is a Mouse version with a rose and eyeball inside, and not often seen.