Dig It - 6/27/24

Hello Fellow Seekers! I remember buying my first kachina doll back in 1968, from a young Hopi carver who was probably about the same age as me, at Old Oriabi. It was an owl kachina and he was the coolest. We were camping near Old Oriabi and we had invited Don Talayesva the Sun Chief of Old Oriabi for dinner. There was a great book written about him entitled, "Sun Chief: The Autobiography of a Hopi Indian", Yale University Press, 1942. I remember he sang songs in Hopi around the camp fire, and we got to taste Hopi Piki bread which was a little dry for my taste. It was an amazing experience for a young pilgrim from New Jersey.

Fellow Seekers that was nearly 56 years ago and I am still fascinated by Kachina dolls. The Kachina illustrated here is an Ogre, (like “Shrek”) Kachina. I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out precisely which Ogre he is, but it got a bit confusing. On his cheeks are paired white vertical lines which are the symbols of warriors. These are associated with Awatovi Soyok’taka, who has a demanding, aggressive personality. In Hopi culture, ogres maintain and enforce proper behavior. The carving on this ogre is superb. His cape is carved up, separating it from his arms and body. Dating him is a little difficult. His mask or head is large in comparison to his body, which is an early trait for kachinas. However, his legs and feet are well carved and delineated, which is sometimes found on early dolls but is more typical of later dolls. My guess is around 1910-1920s.

Regardless of the date, he is a wonderful, dare I say, great Kachina. A few miscellaneous notes that might be of interest; in 1700 the Hopi destroyed the village of Awatovi, killing all the male, Hopi Christian converts. Was this an act by Ogres to correct bad Hopi behavior?  Second, in prehistoric Pueblo art, the grids with the center dots are believed to represent shell beads. Take it for what it is worth. This Ogre Is 10.25” tall and he is for sale. -Lonesome