Native American, Southwestern United States, Hopi, ca. early to mid-20th century CE. A hand-carved wooden kachina doll depicting a large, bird-faced figure. Painted in yellow, red, white, and black pigment, the figure stands atop semicircular feet, wears a knee-length skirt, and holds both arms atop a red belt. The round-topped head features large, circular eyes, a massive avian beak, and a deeply peaked brow, all beneath 6 petaloid wooden feathers as well as a central line of real bird feathers. This kachina doll perhaps depicts the Wiharu White Ogre, a benevolent disciplinarian for Hopi children. Size: 8.25" W x 12.875" H (21 cm x 32.7 cm)

The Katsinam, supernatural beings who live in the high mountains of the San Francisco Peaks above traditional Hopi territory, speak to the Hopi through costumed dance and song. These dancers emerge from the round ceremonial kivas that are at the center of their communities, singly or in groups, and dance to the music of drums, rattles, and song. Katsina figures (katsina dolls, katsin-tihu), are made of cottonwood root to represent these supernatural beings. Cottonwood is culturally symbolic because the cottonwood tree, once abundant in traditional Hopi lands, grows where water flows - thus, looking across a landscape, lines of cottonwood trees denote a water source in the desert. After carving, the figures are painted all over with whitewash, made from kaolin clay, and then painted in brilliant colors. Originally these were done using yucca brushes. Many katsina are then decorated with other materials, like feathers, cloth, or fur. Katsina dolls are often given objects to hold which indicate their roles.

Provenance: private Wabasha, Minnesota, USA collection, acquired between 1970 and 2000

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#171793

Repair to 1 or 2 wooden feathers atop head. Abrasions and inactive insect damage, with fading to pigment, and wear to real feathers on top of head. Nice remains of pigment throughout. Old label beneath one foot reads, "COI 60-K 1/18/98."