Hopi-Tewa Pottery Tile of a Horned Toad Katsina [SOLD]

The image on this tile is that of a Horned Toad Katsina.  Mark Tahbo shared with us that he had seen the image on an older pot and liked it, but did not know what it represented. Normally, one associates a katsina carrying a basket on his back as being an Ogre Katsina, however, this katsina is not an Ogre. The artist told us that one day as he was painting the image, a Hopi police officer stopped by while looking for a neighbor.  The polic officer immediately identified Tahbo's design as the Horned Toad Katsina. This katsina has been extinct since the early 1800s.  It is a Katsina that used to assist the Hopi with their harvest. He is depicted with a basket to assist in gathering the corn at harvest time and an ear of corn is attached to his staff.

The tile depicts the katsina in a side view, with his gathering basket on his back and his hooked staff in front.  His reptilian feet, mouth and scaly back blend with an upright human like stance to create an image of the benevolent spirit who came at harvest time to assist the Hopi, thus helping to assure the village of bounty.  The artist shaped the top of the tile to represent three rain clouds, a symbol associated with abundance and fertility.

Mark Tahbo stated that this tile was made to honor this time of year, the time of harvest; a time to reap the rewards of the hard work that began last spring.

Condition: new

Provenance: this Hopi-Tewa Pottery Tile of a Horned Toad Katsina is from the artist

Recommended Reading:  America's Great Lost Expedition, The Thomas Keam Collection of Hopi Pottery from the Second Hemenway Expedition, 1890-1894 by Edwin Wade and Lea McChesney