Early 20th C. Hootsani Katsina w Detailed Provenance
$6,500.00
This is a bold early version of a Hopi Hootsani katsina. He has half-moon feet which are unusual. This carving is quite stocky; it is 8 3/4″ tall and 5″ wide at the ears. There is a blue wedge-shaped item with feathers attached to the top of the head. When I acquired this piece, it had disfiguring breaks on both forearms which I had professionally restored.
It has interesting provenance. Attached to the original string used for hanging is a small tag that reads “Mace collection.” On the other side of the tag is “Hotcani, Pl XXXVIII,” which points the early origin of this carving. The plate number refers to Plate 38 in Fewkes’ 1903 volume “Hopi Katchinas Drawn by Native Artists.” On page 138 of this volume is a Plate 38, a depiction of “Hotcani.” When I acquired this katsina, there was additional provenance: “collected by Chalmers V.A. Pittman in 1935.” A charismatic example.