Old Style Hopi Carved Ogre Woman Traditional Disciplinarian Katsina Doll

Description

Old Style Hopi Carved Ogre Woman (Atosle) Traditional Disciplinarian Katsina Doll by Rodriguez Poleahla

Ogres (Tseveyo) are disciplinarians who appear around the time of the Bean Dance (Powamuya) ceremony with the Whippers and at Angk'wa with the Mixed Dancers. The purpose of these Katsinam is to reinforce the Hopi way of life to the children of the Pueblo. The fierce and threatening behavior of these Katsinam strikes fear into the children, but they are eventually saved from imminent danger by the people of their Pueblo. These Katsinam are commonly called Boogeymen by Anglos. The Black Ogre (Nata-aska), and the White Ogre (Wiharu), carry a saw (sometimes a knife) as well as a bow and arrows for hunting. Their outstanding feature is their long, flapping jaws, which they can clack most effectively. These Ogres accompany Ogre Woman (Soyoko Wuhti) and sometimes, her sister Atosle, when they come to the Mesas to tell the children they must gather food for the Katsinam. Nata-aska comes as well to show the children what punishments they may face if they do not do what Soyoko Wuhti asks. As a means of discipline, children are told the Ogres can swallow them whole unless they are good children. In most ceremonies the Nataska Katsinam accomplish their objective and the children do as they are told. At the end of the ceremony, the men of the village take back from the Nata-aska Katsinam the food they have gathered from the children.