Native American, Southwestern United States, Hopi, ca. late 20th to 21st century CE. A notable kachina sculpture of 3 Koyemsi or "Mudheads" preforming their ceremonial antics in a tree. All are carved from wood and set on a dried branch mounted on a wooden base. The mischievous Mudheads hold feathers and a leather drum, these are the Kachinas that entertain the audience, especially the children present. The dancers wear masks with spherical gourds and traditionally smeared or applied with mud to represent the first primordial people that emerged from the earth, coming up through a portal or hole in the kiva dirt floor. The base is signed, "Mudhead Tree" with an illegible signature. A unique piece for any kachina collector! Size: 10" L x 6" W x 20.5" H (25.4 cm x 15.2 cm x 52.1 cm)

Provenance: ex-private Bishop Family Trust collection, the Trust of the late Bill Bishop, a noted antiquarian with shops in Scottsdale, Arizona and Allenspark, Colorado, USA, acquired before 2010

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#173220

One kachina is completely loose from tree and missing a foot. Losses and fraying to feathers on all three kachina, and loss to sphere on standing Kachina head. Brightly painted and tree branch is stable.