Hopi Cottonwood Carving of the Turkey Katsina [SOLD]

According to Barton Wright, the Turkey Katsinas appear in the kivas with the other bird katsinas at night or during the Mixed Dances of late spring. He is not a common katsina and appears at First Mesa only. 

This is an exceptional carving of the Turkey Katsina.  The hands of the dancer are beautifully rendered. The body proportions are very accurate and the mask is of a scale to fit over a dancer’s head.  The array of single feathers all over the body and mask as well as the group of wing feathers on the arms and the rear bustle of feathers all add immensely to the spectacular presentation.

The carver, Joe Duwyenie, is from the Third Mesa village of Hotevilla and has been carving since before 1980.  He was in the Museum of Northern Arizona Hopi Show in 1981 and at Santa Fe Indian Market since 1992.  This carving was originally purchased in 1986 from the Kiva Gallery in Santa Fe.

Condition: original condition

Provenance: from the estate of Tom Mittler, a former resident of Michigan and Santa Fe who purchased it from The Kiva in Santa Fe in 1986

Recommended Reading: Hopi Katsina: 1,600 Artist Biographies by Gregory Schaaf