Snake Dancer Kachina

The so-called Kachina dolls are not intended as toys but are carved by the fathers and uncles of Hopi children to instruct them in the characteristics of the spirits that bring rain, crops, bird songs, flowers, fertility, and supernatural protection. The carvers give special attention to the distinguishing details of mask, costume, and color. These spirits are personified in the masked Kachina dances held each year at the beginning of the summer season.Neither the dolls nor the Kachina spirits they represent are worshipped as idols or gods; rather, they are cherished as powerful friends and guardians. Of the more than 250 representations of Kachina in the Hopi pantheon, only handfuls are recognized as gods.