Kachina Doll (Powamuy Katsina)

Arts of the Americas

In the southwestern United States, a supernatural being that represents a life-force or embodies a natural phenomenon such as the sun, the moon, a plant, or an animal is called a koko by the Zuni and a katsina (commonly anglicized as “kachina”) by the Hopi. Such beings have the power to control rainfall, crop growth, and fertility; to cure and protect; and to act as messengers between the gods and human beings. Carved kachina figures, also known as kachina dolls, are representations of these spirits and can have a sacred or an educational purpose. During some ceremonies, the carvings are given to community members to reward virtuous behavior, recognize a recent marriage, or teach children about religion. In the 1800s, a lively market for the carvings developed among non-Native collectors and tourists, giving rise to the elaborate art form that flourishes today.

ARTIST Henry Shelton, 1929–2016

CULTURE Pueblo, Hopi

MEDIUM Cottonwood root, acrylic paint, yarn,metal bells, feathers, leather, cotton

Possible Place Made: Oraibi, Third Mesa, Arizona, United States

DATES 1960–1970

DIMENSIONS 14 1/2 × 5 × 6 1/2 in. (36.8 × 12.7 × 16.5 cm)

SIGNATURE Signed on base Henry Shelton Oraibi AZ with an arrow

COLLECTIONS Arts of the Americas

ACCESSION NUMBER 2010.6.12

CREDIT LINE Gift of Edith and Hershel Samuels

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Carved kachina doll representing Powamuy. The PR arm is raised and the hand holds a blue gourd rattle and the wrist is tied with yarn. The PL arm is down holding a flute with feathers dangling from it while the wrist has a carved armband simulating metal with turquoise in the center. His PR leg is raised and painted blue. PL leg is down and painted yellow. Both legs have short blue boots, the knees are striped yellow and blue, and both have a band of bells tied to them. The bare chest is painted flesh colored with yellow on the PL breast and blue on the PR. He wears a carved Hopi kilt. On his back he wears a multicolored yellow, blue and red backpack trimmed with red fringed yarn, topped with feathers and lower edged with cotton. Underneath this peeps out a carved wood fox tail. He has a blue face painted with diagonal yellow and black stripes in triangles on the cheeks, slit eyes and triangular mouth. He wears feathers on the back of his long black hair.

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.

Collection Menu

Kachina Doll (Powamuy Katsina)

Arts of the Americas

RELATED OBJECTS