Very Small Mongwa Wuhti - Female Owl Katsina Doll by Koots [SOLD]

The Great Horned Owl Wuhti (female) has only been published in Fewkes' article on Hopi Katsinas and has appeared nowhere else. Present-day Hopi are not aware of the female version, so perhaps it has not been seen in over a hundred years.

This version of the Mongwa Wuhti is beautifully carved and painted. She wears a traditional pueblo manta and has a white wedding shawl draped over her shoulders.  She appears to be carved from a single piece of cottonwood root.

It is quite possible that Jimmy Koots had access to Fewke’s publication and used it as a reference for carving this version.

Condition: excellent condition

Provenance: from the collection of a native of Stockholm, Sweden who was gifted them.  They were originally purchased in 1965 from Rare Things by Dutton, a Santa Fe business located at 138 Sena Plaza with the telephone number of Yucca2-5904.  The original invoice stated “Dolls from Hotevilla, 3^rd Mesa, Hopi, Arizona,”

Reference and Recommended Reading: Fewkes, J. W. Tusayan Katcinas. Washington, D. C. Bureau of American Ethnology, 15^th Annual Report, 1897.