Warrior Kachina

Among the Kachinas are spirits who keep order, both in conflicts between tribes and within the individual tribes. In the dances, enthusiasm may grow too great for some onlookers, and this Kachina dancer whirls among the crowd with his yucca whips to chastise the rowdy and wan back those who come too close and would touch the other Kachinas.

This is particularly true during Powamu , the first of the Kachina ceremonies in the Indian calendar. Although the entire ceremony is often centered on the Bean Dance, it is actually cleansing the tribe and making all things ready for spring and the return of plant life and game. Hence, the good feeling associated with the return of the Kachina may bring a need for this warrior Kachinas restraining hand and flicking whip.

His headpiece is based on a bird motif, with a bird attached to the top and the peg set into the face suggesting a beak. The ruff about his neck is fox fur and the necklace is composed of seashells, which before the advent of the white man, also acted as bells when strung, as in this painting, around his knees.