Museum Expedition 1905, Museum Collection Fund

This is a wood mudhead clown kachina doll with wool skirt and collar with a feather attached to one of the knobs on top of the head. Small left kachina in the photograph. Koyemshi Kachina (Mudhead) Clowns Koyemshi Kachinas, or Mudheads were created when the Zuni first entered the world. One brother and sister had improper relations so their ten children became Mudheads. Each Mudhead exhibits behavior opposite to what their name is. Thus “The Aged One” acts like a child, “The Invisible One,” thinks he is hiding if he only holds up a feather in front of his face, while the all-important “Speaker of the Sun” is really a witless daydreamer and rarely speaks. A troop of ten different Mudhead Kachinas appear in most Zuni ceremonies performing outrageous behaviors and interacting with the audience, making them laugh but also making people realize how wrong such behavior really is as the clowns are eventually chased away.

Kachina doll carrying two dance sticks wearing a painted dance skirt.

Butterfly Girl (Polimana) Kachina. This Kachina has a body carved from one piece of cottonwood root. She wears a large, rayed headdress painted brilliantly with blue, yellow and red stripes and black dots that indicate pollen on the front. The back of the headdress is red with a cluster of feathers on the back of her head and three braided yarns, one each, red, green, white hanging down the back. She stands on both feet and raises her PR arm holding two feathers in each hand. Her clothing is also all carved. She wears a blue dress with darker blue apron with red and green bands on the bottom and a red sash with a broken diamond pattern. She has a short white shawl with red edges around her PL shoulder. Butterfly Girl appears during Angk'wa (night dances). It is a series of colorful dances usually performed with four pairs of maidens and male partners (all kachinas portrayed by males). The Angk'wa is sponsored by a kiva to promote all life-growth.

This kneeling deer has hide antlers and feathers dangling from his chin area. (front right) Remnants of paint are on his body.

Museum Expedition 1907, Museum Collection Fund

Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund

Museum Expedition 1903, Museum Collection Fund

Wildcat (Tokotski) Kachina Doll. This Kachina has a body carved from one piece of cottonwood root. He is positioned with his PL leg and PL arm raised, slightly crouching. His kilt and sash with a fox tail hanging down the back are carved root. His cape is spotted fur. He wears a carved turtle rattle on the PR leg ankle. His hide bandolier is decorated with shells. He has a hide fringe on top of painted on boots. The white head mask has a snout with bared teeth, black goggle eyes set in a brown "bandit" type mask and he has black cat paws painted on his cheeks. Top of the mask has feathers. He has large red ears. Wildcat Kachina appears by itself during Angk'wa (a series of night dances). His prayers are for rain to increase their wildcat numbers so the Hopi can have more pelts.

Museum Expedition 1903, Museum Collection Fund