The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-11-18
DOLLS FOR LITTLE MOKI
QUAINT IDOLS USED BY ARIZONA IN
DIANs FOR PLAYTHINGs.
Remarkable Collection Brought To-
sefher in the Peabody Institute
Cut from Cottonwood.

CAMBRIDGE. Mass. Nov. 17.-One of the
most curious collection of dolls 10 be found
IN the world has been arranged in one of
the cases IN the body Museum at Rar-
ward. comprising nearly 100 hgurines carved
out Of the root OF the cottonwood by the
Moki Indians of New Mexico. Nothing
can be imagined more naively grotesque in
form and coloring than these little figures,
which symbolic indeed the katcinas or
Moki gods, but are none the less the gen
uine playthfngs OF the little Mok girls.
They belong TO the Mary Hemenway col
lection OF Tusayan objects which was
brought together from the ruined pueblos
or Arizona and the villages of the Moki In
dams by DR.. ]. Walter Fewkes and the
late Frank III. Cushing, and deposited by
Mrs Hemenway's executors with the great
astrological collections OF Harvard Uni
versity In the Peabody Museum Most Of
them were obtained from the Moki by T.
". keam, well-known Indian trader Of
keam's Canyon. Arizona.
The great ceremonials OF the Moki, from
which these dolls are derived are among
the most Interesting in the world and,
though the dolls are really dolls and not
idols, they furnish the most complete COM
mentary possible on the religious beliefs
and customs OF the Indians who made
them The Moh dances-the great snake
dance in particular-are well known. In
these dances the men OF the tribe appear
IN masks representing. by a definite SYM
bolism. the gods in whose honor they are
held: and the dolls which are given out TO
the children-with the intention, probably.
OF tins
not only are made TO suggest the dancers
IN their masks, but are themselves dis
trtbuted at the Farewell Dance" So
called. or katcina-for the word means both
the god and the ceremonial in his honor
which takes place the last of July or the
first OF August
A VARIETY OF GODS.
Moki mythology includes a great num-
Der and variety of gods There are the
great gods who dwell forever in the beau
tlfui San Francisco mountains, the Moki
olympus, seventy-five or eighty miles west
ward from the Moki villages; and the les
ser gods. who come among the Moki in
December, and leave them TO return to
the mountains in midsummer. The lat
ter are the katcinas. The object of their
soJourn In the villages is that they may
learn the needs and wishes of the Moki
and report them TO the great gods.
While the katcinas are in the Moki viii
lagos the inhabitants take every onpor-
tunity TO please them and do them honor.
in the course OF the season half a dozen
festivals take place. not every year to the
same katcinas Except that the first. or
return" festival is always in honor of the
war katcina), but so arranged that in the
course Of few years all may receive their
fair amount of worship
There are something like sixty or sew
enty of these katcinas. many of them
the gods OF rain and water. as is natural
In so dry and torrid a country as Arizona.
while others are called after the commoner
Wild animals, as the antelope katcina, the
wolf katcina. or the mountain sheep kat
Gina, or after the staple articles of food.
as the maize katcina.
The farewell katcina may be given I'm
honor of any one of these gods. 1t lasts
nine days and nine nights There are
Doth secret and public ceremonies con-
nected with it. the former being carried
on by the priests OF chiefs in an under
ground chamber called a "klva," and the
latter consisting of dance in the village.
In which thirty or forty persons take part.
each dressed To represent the katcina who
mas been chosen for Worship
While the priests are by themselves u,
the kiva celebrating the rites of the gof
the body OF men who are TO perform the
public dance retire into another kiva to
prepare the paraphernalia which they must
wear on the day of their appearance If
IL Is the lightning katcina, for instance.
that has been selected for this occasion.
eacn man is dressed to represent him and
no other divinity. In 1890 when the men,
oers or the Hemenway expedition observed
the farewell dance, the antelope katcins
had been chosen The forty dancers
more or less-who were to take part re-
tired into the kiva allotted them. and oc-
cupied several days in painting the masks.
Kits and implements which thew were IN
wear or carry. with the symbols proper 10
the antelope god. There were to be thirty
three men and six women represented
but all the performers were men, Each
fashioned for himself a helmet of srcb
odd pieces OF leather as he could procura
or more often refurbished an old one used
before The helmet amounted to no more
than rough mask, In the form of a
cylinder. which should rest upon his
shoulders so as to completely hide his
head and neck. A couple of Sits were
cut for his eyes. and another for his mouth.
and the whole was appropriately decorated
with symbolical ba nds and spots OF paint
In honor of the antelope katcina In ad-
dition. the dancer got ready long kilt of
cotton canvas, or. If he were TO be a
woman. a blanket.
RELIGIOUS SERVICE
The musical instruments required by
each person consisted OF a couple of rat
tles-one made of a dyed gourd contain
Ing small stones. and fastened to a handle
the other an arrangement made OF a tor
toise SHE'LL to be tied TO the calf of the
left leg in a way that ii would rattle IN
the dance.
Besides making ready these parapher-
palia. the performers in this farewell
katcina must make a number OF toys for
the children, miniature bows and arrows
for the boys. roasted ears OF corn and
cakes OF meal. and, above all, the dolls
FOR the little girls.
Some OF the dolls are so elaborate thal
Il f. impossible for man to make one oil
them In the few days that he spends In