Hopi Pueblo MaaMa Kachina Doll By Murray Harvey Polacca

Late 20th Century 

10.25" H x 4.375" L x 4.875" W

Hand Carved from Cottonwood Root Holding a Rattle and Adorned with Yarn, Leather and Feathers AZ

In Very Good Condition

Hopi Pueblo Kachina Doll by Murray Harvey Polacca is a traditional Hopi Katsina (Kachina) doll hand-carved by the Hopi artist Murray Harvey Polacca. From a 1992 New York Times feature, Murray Harvey Polacca was a respected Hopi carver from the Polacca area (near First Mesa on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona). At the time, he was 64 years old and had been carving kachina dolls for nearly 45 years. He used cottonwood root — the traditional material for these figures due to its light weight and spiritual significance (the roots seek water deep underground, mirroring Hopi values in their arid homeland).

Polacca began carving primarily as a religious practice, creating dolls for his three daughters each February and July to coincide with Hopi ceremonies. These dolls helped teach young girls about the kachinas — supernatural spirit beings that bring rain, fertility, health, and harmony with nature. During ceremonies, Hopi men embody these spirits through masked dances, and the dolls serve as educational replicas.