We spent several enjoyable hours, including taking a guided tour, at this museum, which is all about Native American Indians. It was started by Dwight & Maie Heard in 1929 to showcase their collection of Native American art & artifacts, and it is now housed in their mansion. Sandra Day O'Connor is a former president of the Heard Museum Board of Trustees.
We saw so many beautiful pieces of jewelry, pots, baskets, Katsina (Kachina dolls), clothing, etc., and we learned a lot about how the Indians were removed from their settlements and forced into reservations.
The Katsina are made by Hopi and also by Navajo, although the Hopi say that theirs are the true katsina. They are meticulously carved from cottonwood root and are not really dolls, but are made to depict the supernatural beings who are believed to visit the Hopi villages during half of the year. They have the power to bring rain, to exercise control over the weather, help in many of the daily activities of the Hopi, punish offenders of social & ceremonial laws, and function as messengers between the spiritual domain & mortals.
We saw so many beautiful pieces of jewelry, pots, baskets, Katsina (Kachina dolls), clothing, etc., and we learned a lot about how the Indians were removed from their settlements and forced into reservations.
The Katsina are made by Hopi and also by Navajo, although the Hopi say that theirs are the true katsina. They are meticulously carved from cottonwood root and are not really dolls, but are made to depict the supernatural beings who are believed to visit the Hopi villages during half of the year. They have the power to bring rain, to exercise control over the weather, help in many of the daily activities of the Hopi, punish offenders of social & ceremonial laws, and function as messengers between the spiritual domain & mortals.
