KACHINA TALAVAI / Kachina of the Dawn. Hopi, Arizona, U.S.A. - Lot 18

Lot n° 18
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Estimation :
4000 - 6000 EUR
KACHINA TALAVAI / Kachina of the Dawn. Hopi, Arizona, U.S.A. - Lot 18
KACHINA TALAVAI / Kachina of the Dawn. Hopi, Arizona, U.S.A. Circa 1920. Wood, natural pigments, feathers, cord. This Kachina has a hole in the top to hold an armful of feathers. The forehead is decorated with a band of alternating small rectangles. The eyes are trapezoidal, set against a blue-green background. The cheeks are adorned with symbols of clouds and falling rain. The tubular nose is red, in harmony with the pierced ears. A black band adorns the base of the mask. The costume is red and features a versicolored collar, with splashes of color on the red of the garment, a reminder of the importance of saving rain. Talavai wears the traditional white kilt (katzin vitkuna) adorned with a beautiful liturgical sash on the right, stubby legs and semi-circular feet shod with yellow and blue-green boots respectively. This Kachina, adorned in precious tones, used to appear at sunrise in the company of his twin, singing happy or sad refrains to awaken the villagers and call them to enjoy the joys of a new day. Probably refilled by the Hopi with pigments around the eyes and on the kilt, natural wear to the pigments, otherwise very good condition. Height: 26.5 cm Bibliography: Laniel-Le François, Kachina des indiens Hopi, Ed.Amez, Saint-Vit, 1992, p. 360. Hopi Katcinas by Jesse Walter Fewkes, Smithsonian Institution, p. 102. Related piece: see a Talavai Kachina in the collections of the Muséum für Völkerkunde, Berlin, Germany.
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