Mask representing Heheya
The Kachina, messenger of the rain gods
Hopi culture, Arizona
Around 1920-1930
Hide, wood, horsehair, plant fibers and pigments
Height: 33 cm; Width: 44 cm

A leather helmet mask adorned with polychrome pigments. Heheya is recognizable by her blue-green mask, her attached wooden ears, her mouth made of a fabric sausage, and her schematic nose—probably an ear of corn covered in cotton. These latter elements are all pigmented red—a color also used to outline the circular eye sockets. From the top of her nose to her cheeks, an inverted blue triangle is painted.
The lower edge of the mask has a rigid structure made of braided plant fibers – the remaining cords remind us of its role: to support the deity's attire.
On the reverse, the important symbol of the sacred calendar, also called the horizon calendar, of the mesa dances is painted in red ochre and black on a white background.

Heheya, the kachina messenger of the rain gods, appears on the occasion of the third mesa.

Illustrative image: Hopi rain ceremony, Shungopavi village, Arizona, USA, circa 1870-1900.

Text and photos © FCP CORIDON

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