200319-06 Hopi Katsina /a Katchina Doll, Signed "G Pochnema Cloud Girl / Tukwinong Mana"
8 1/2"h
c. 2000
There appears to be a crack on the inside area of the Kiva which extends to the base. This appears to have been broken and glued which is quite common even during the carving of this piece. I've price this in mind.
Hand carved from cottonwood root. With Kachina rising out of flower with Kiva and Kiva ladder carved. Elaborate and unusual carving
TUKWINONG MANA is the Hopi Goddess of clouds. She is the kachina who appears in the Shalako Ceremony, a dance that occurs after the last harvest of the year. Tukwinong Mana carries a tray of cornmeal divided into four colors, representing the clouds of the four direction.
As the representative of the clouds, she listens to and answers prayers for rain. Her name, which means "cumulus cloud girl," is also seen as TUKWUNAG KACHIN-MANA.