Extraordinary Hopi Hé-é-e or Warrior Maid Katsina Doll [SOLD]

“Hé-é-e or Hé’wuhti may be seen in Powamu celebrations most years, but it is at the Pachavu ceremonies that Hé-é-e is seen in her most impressive appearance.  This kachina is the Warrior Maid, based on the story of a young girl:

Many years ago, tradition says that some Hopis were living outside of the main village, and the mother of this household was putting up her daughter’s hair.  The mother had finished only one side of the hair whorls, the hair on the other side still hanging loosely, when they saw enemies sneaking toward the village.  The daughter snatched up a bow, quiver and arrows from the wall and raced toward the village to warn the people. She then led the defense until the men in the fields could return and rout the enemy.

“She has been personated ever since as a kachina and always appears with her hair partially up on one side and hanging down on the other.  On the back of her head she wears an artificial scalp lock, and she carries the weapons she snatched up so long ago.  She still guards the village.  During Pachavu times she gives the signal that drives everyone indoors when certain ceremonies must be performed out in the open.  And it is she who leads the horde of hooting, jangling, threatening kachinas along the line of procession into the village in the final moments of the ceremony of Pachavu.”  Wright 1973

This representation of Hé-é-e probably dates to the 1950s according to the previous owner. Her hair on the left side is put up in the style of the unmarried Hopi girl.  The hair on the right side hangs down in the unfinished manner. 

Condition:  the front part of each foot has been broken off and glued back in place without any missing wood.  The doll is in very good condition for its age.

Recommended Reading: Hopi Kachinas: The Complete Guide to Collecting Kachina Dolls by Barton Wright.  

Provenance: this Extraordinary Hopi Hé-é-e or Warrior Maid Katsina Doll is from a family collection in Santa Fe