WOODEN FEATHER ORNAMENT WITH KACHINA FIGURES; 5"

MADE BY MARVIN JIM

(SOLD INDIVIDUALLY OR SET OF 3)

This 5” long, soft, light wood ornament comes From one of the last and longest running trading posts operating on the Navajo Nation reservation and handcrafted by a Navajo artisan.   These ornaments are handpainted to replicate traditional craftware.

Kachinas are spirits or personifications of things in the real world. These spirits are believed to visit villages during the first half of the year. A kachina can represent anything in the natural world or cosmos, from a revered ancestor to an element, a location, a quality, a natural phenomenon, or a concept. The local pantheon of kachinas varies in each community; there may be kachinas for the sun, stars, thunderstorms, wind, corn, insects, and many other concepts. Kachinas are understood as having humanlike relationships; they may have uncles, sisters, and grandmothers, and may marry and have children. Although not worshipped, each is viewed as a powerful being who, if given veneration and respect, can use his particular power for human good, bringing rainfall, healing, fertility, or protection, for example.