220521-02 Large Antique Hopi Hemis Kachina,
Early to Mid 20th Century
Size: 21 3/4" h x 10 1/4" w
Hand carved from Cottonwood Root
Damage at the feet as pictured and general overall wear.
Hand Carved Cottonwood Root
The Hemis Katsina is probably the most beautiful and best known of all Hopi Katsinas. His elaborate headdress, called a tableta, is partly responsible for his beauty. His body is painted with black corn smut with light colored half moons on the chest. He wears a kilt, which has been elaborately embroidered. The tableta is painted with phallic and cloud symbols and capped with feathers. He appears in the Home Dance or Niman Ceremony. No other katsinas, neither clowns nor side dancers appear with the line of Hemis except the Hemis Manas.
It is interesting to note that at Hopi, they refer to the Hemis Katsina as having come from the Rio Grande Jemez Pueblo of New Mexico. At Jemez Pueblo, they refer to a similar dance as a Hopi dance.
A kachina (/kəˈtʃiːnə/; also katchina, katcina, or katsina; Hopi: katsina [kaˈtsʲina], plural katsinim [kaˈtsʲinim]) is a spirit being in the religious beliefs of the Pueblo peoples, Native American cultures located in the south-western part of the United States. Dolls are carved traditionally as teaching tools for the children as Oral Traditions as facilitated with the dolls. Each doll has a story associated, sometimes historical events, sometimes the physical world and sometimes the mystical. In the Pueblo cultures, kachina rites are practiced by the Hopi, Zuni, Hopi-Tewa, and certain Keresan tribes, as well as in most Pueblo tribes in New Mexico.
Due to the fragile nature of kachina dolls, we do not guarantee they will not break during shipping. We do our best to pack them well, but due to their fragile nature and even with the best packing, small pieces can break. If you are purchasing kachina dolls, please keep this in mind.