Hopi Katsina Doll with Bird Beak [SOLD]

Some of the older Hopi men had difficulty reconciling making traditional katsina dolls to be sold to tourists because of conflicts with the traditional meaning of the dolls to the Hopi people. Katsina dolls were made as gifts from the Katsinam to the Hopi females as a means of including them in the Katsinam ceremonies that were practiced by the Hopi men.  To some of the older men, carving the dolls for sale was degrading and perhaps sacrilegious to their meaning.  Wilson Tawaquaptewa was one of the most famous carvers with such feelings.

To prevent defying their religious beliefs in the Katsina culture, yet, to be able to participate in the money-making business of selling katsina dolls to tourists, some of these men made dolls that did not accurately reflect the true katsinas.  The carvings looked like authentic katsinas but were not accurate in the portrayal of a specific katsina.  They may have had features of several katsinas combined to appear to reflect an existing katsina but did not violate their belief in the meaning of true katsinas. 

This katsina doll could be a representation of a Parrot Katsina, but the facial features, except for the beak, do not reflect that of the Parrot Katsina. Dolls made in this manner are as collectible as dolls later made in more accurate presentation.  These unidentifiable katsina dolls served a purpose from around 1920 to 1950 of providing a marketable item for buyers who did not know that they were being fooled by the Hopi men.  The carvers assuredly enjoyed this plot and enjoyed the funds derived from it.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Hopi Katsina Doll with Bird Beak is from a family from Albuquerque

Recommended Reading: Kikmongwi As Artist: The Katsina Dolls of Wilson Tawaquaptewa by Barry Walsh in American Indian Art Magazine, Winter 1998