8" tall First Mesa Kachina Authentic Native American Navajo FREE SHIPPING #11

Description

(photos show front, side, back and bottom of the exact item you will receive)
Many Native American tribes of the Southwest, notably the Pueblo, Hopi, Zuni and Navajo have ceremonies in which masked men, called kachinas, play an important role.
A Kachina is a spirit being which has three different aspects: the supernatural being, the kachina dancers (masked members of the community who represent kachinas at religious ceremonies), and kachina dolls.  Kachina dolls are small brightly painted wooden "dolls" which are miniature representations of the masked impersonators. These figurines are given to children not as toys, but as items to be treasured and studied so that they may become familiar with the appearance of different kachinas as part of their religious training. During Kachina ceremonies, each child receives their own doll. The dolls are then taken home and hung up on the walls or from the rafters of the house, so that they can be constantly seen by the children. The purpose of this is to help the children learn to know what the different kachinas look like and are seen as a connection with the spirit world.
A delightful hand crafted kachina doll with lots of detail.
The first mesa kachina often leads the procession during the dance.   His dancing is believed to encourage the growth of crops.
This brightly colored
kachina  has a
wooden hand painted headpiece with symbols representing rain clouds topped with tiny pheasant feathers .
White rabbit fur white & tan leather for the clothing is also used.
This very colorful unique hand carved, hand painted Kachina  stands  approx 9" in height (with feathers)  and is approx. 5" in overall width
Signed by the artist on the bottom.
Ma
de by
Cheryl Thompson
who is a member of the Navajo nation.
*Free shipping is for within the USA only