Mana Kachina
Kokopelli: a Humpbacked Flute Player
Kokopelli is a fertility deity, who is worshipped by many Native American Indian tribes in the Southwest. And like most fertility deities, Kokopelli presides over both childbirth and agriculture. He is also thought to be a trickster god, traveling trader, insect, musician, warrior and hunting magician.
Kokopelli likeness varies almost as much as his legends. He is usually illustrated as a humpbacked flute player often with a huge phallus and antenna-like protrusions on his head. The first identified images of him appear on Hohokam pottery dated to sometime between 750 A.D and 850 A.D.
According to the Hopi myth, Kokopelli carries unborn children on his back and distributes them to women. He often takes part in rituals relating to marriage, and Kokopelli himself is sometimes depicted with a consort, a woman called Kokopelli-mana by the Hohokam and Hopi. At San Idelfonso, a Pueblo Village, Kokopelli is thought to be a wandering minstrel with a sack of songs on his back who trades old songs for new. An according to Navajo legend, Kokopelli is a God of harvest and plenty. It is thought that his sack was made of clouds full of rainbows or seeds.
Kokopelli may have originally been a representation of ancient Aztec traders, known as pochtecas, who traveled to the Southwest from northern Mesoamerica. These traders brought their goods in sacks slung across their backs and this sack may have evolved into Kokopelli’s familiar hump. These traders also used their flutes to announce themselves as friendly as they approached a settlement. This origin is still in doubt, however, since the first known images of Kokopelli predate the major era of Aztec-Anasazi trade by several hundred years.
Another theory is that Kokopelli is actually an anthropomorphic insect. Many of the earliest depictions of Kokopelli make him very insect-like in appearance. The name “Kokopelli” may be a combination of “Koko”, another Hopi and Zuni deity, and “pelli”, the Hopi and Zuni word for the desert robber fly, an insect with a prominent proboscis and a rounded back, which is also noted for its zealous sexual proclivities. A more recent etymology is that Kokopelli means literally “kachina hump”. Because the Hopi were the tribe from whom the Spanish explorers first learned of the god, their name is the one most commonly used.
A similar humpbacked figure is found in artifacts of the Mississippian culture of the U.S. southeast. Approximately 1200 to 1400 AD, water vessels were crafted in the shape of a humpbacked woman. These forms may represent a cultural heroine or founding ancestor, and may also reflect concepts related to the life-giving blessings of water and fertility.
Kokopelli is one of the most widely recognized images today. His images can be found on anything such as T-shirts, ball caps, key chains and so many more things. A bicycle trail between Grand Junction, Colorado and Moab, Utah, is now known as the Kokopelli Trail.
About the Author
Avicenna : more about Maya Indian as well as Mesoamerican and Native american Indian artifact, art and Jewelry.
KT106
|
|
Vintage Hopi Walter Howato Carved 18″ Salako Mana Hopi Cloud Maiden Kachina Doll $1,200.00 |
|
|
John Fredericks Hopi Native American Woman Guard Kachina Doll Heoto Mana Carved $129.99 |
|
|
VERY LARGE HOHO MANA HOPI OLD TRADITONAL STYLE KATSINA/KACHINA $22.77 |
|
|
Hopi “Kachin Mana” Cradle Kachina Doll Unsigned $9.99 |
|
|
HOPI INDIAN CORN MAIDEN KACHIN MANA /KACHINA / KATSINA $120.00 |
|
|
Vintage Hopi WALTER HOWATO 25″ Salako Mana Hopi Cloud Maiden Dancer Kachina Doll $2,600.00 |
|
|
6 Vintage A-Big-B AZ Kachina Iron On Transfers Nata-Aska Hemis Mana Kawaika’a $120.00 |
|
|
BEAUTIFUL HOPI WHITE FACE RAINBOW MANA KACHINA SCULPTURE!! MERVIN HAYAH $59.99 |
|
|
BEAUTIFUL HOPI BLUE FACE HANO MANA KACHINA SCULPTURE!! MERVIN HAYAH $49.99 |
|
|
SUPERB HOPI MINIATURE BLUE FACED MANA KACHINA!! JON PINTO $59.99 |
|
|
ON SALE!!! Beautiful Navajo Hano Mana Kachina Doll by Randy Gorman $1,038.00 |
|
|
1970′s HOPI NATIVE AMERICAN INDIAN KACHINA DOLL – HAND-MADE KOKOPELLI MANA $24.99 |
|
|
Hopi Sio Salako Mana Kachina – Waapaataka Amilestewa $400.00 |
|
|
This is a Hopi Kachina PB Illus 1965 Wright & Roat Hahai Wuqti, Kachin-Mana Ho $31.00 |
|
|
Hopi Old Style 13″ Pahlik Mana Butterfly Maiden Kachina Doll – Bryan Nasetoynewa $900.00 |
|
|
Hopi Kachinas ANG-CHIN MANA SM Iron-On Homer H.Boelter $3.99 |
|
|
Hopi Long Hair & Kachina Mana Kachina Doll Sculpture S7 $200.00 |
|
|
HOPI INDIAN KACHINA FREESTANDING PAHLIK MANA COLORFUL $1,240.00 |
|
|
Teissedre Designs Palhik Mana Butterfly Kachina Maiden Mask 6″ Art Tile Trivet $11.99 |
|
|
Cleo Teissedre Designs Palhik Mana Butterfly Kachina Maiden 6″ Art Tile Trivet $11.99 |
|
|
Hopi “Kachina Mana” Poota Coil Style Basket S6 $400.00 |
|
|
Hopi “Kachina Mana” Poota Coil Style Basket/Plaque S6 $235.00 |
|
|
Hopi made Zuni HoHo Mana Kachina Maiden with bowl, Frog on back of head 7″ high $275.00 |
|
|
Hopi Kachina Doll – Hano Mana – Beautiful! $240.00 |
|
|
Hopi Kachina Sculpture – Hemis Mana- Fantastic! $70.00 |
|
|
Native HOPI Norman Cuch 10″ Butterfly Maiden Palhik Mana Dancer Kachina Doll $899.00 |
|
|
Sun Kachina ~Tawa Katsina + Kokopelli Mana 50′s Vintage $269.00 |
|
|
Hopi Indian Neil David Sr Flirting Clown & Kokopelli Mana Kachina Katsina Dolls $1,796.00 |
|
|
8.5″ Hopi Carved Hano Mana Katsina Sculpture Kachina Doll by Sankey George Jr. $650.00 |
|
|
9″ Hopi Carved Hano Mana Katsina Sculpture Kachina Doll by Edgar Rogers $575.00 |
|
|
10″ Hopi Carved Hoho Mana Katsina Sculpture Kachina Doll by Marlin Honhongva $750.00 |
|
|
Hopi Neil David Sr. Palik Mana Kachina Painting S5 $500.00 |
|
|
Hopi Kachina Mana Doll Sculpture S5 $200.00 |
|
|
Hopi Neil David Sr. Shalako Mana Kachina Doll Sculpture S5 $400.00 |
|
|
13″ Hopi Carved Kokopelli Mana Katsina Sculpture Kachina Doll by Joseph Duwyenie $375.00 |
|
|
Hopi Kachinas: The Complete Guide to Collecting Kachina Dolls $5.84 Recently updated, Hopi Kachinas: The Complete Guide to Collecting Kachina Dolls continues to be the best-selling book for identifying and collecting Kachinas. In this comprehensive guide, Barton Wright identifies over 150 dolls, ranging from the more traditional style of dolls to the new ultra-realistic style. Also included are detailed descriptions of the dolls and invaluable buying tips. Whether… |
|
|
Kachinas: A Hopi Artist’s Documentary $29.95 Stories of the Hopi who make Kachina dolls… |
|
|
Vintage KACHINA IRON ON – Hemis Mana. #315 By A-Big-B Creation, Phoenix, Arizona. 8 x 3.5. Instruction Sheet included. Vintage KACHINA IRON ON – Hemis Mana. #315 By A-Big-B Creation, Phoenix, Arizona. 8″ x 3.5″. Instruction Sheet included…. |