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Renowned Hopi/Diné (Navajo) kachina artist George Pooley carved hundreds of kachinas (katsinas) in his long career which spanned from the 1970’s to his death in 2009. He learned the craft from his father, also a well-known artist, Emil Pooley, as he grew up in Third Mesa Arizona. He was a part of the “Route 66” style that grew amongst the trading posts along Route 66, which is celebrating its 100th year this year. The Palhik Mana, or Butterfly Maiden, is a prominent spiritual figure in the Hopi culture and tradition. She represents agriculture, renewal, and the pollination of crops like corn by butterflies. This particular maiden is 7.5” tall and adorned with a painted squash blossom necklace, with turkey or pheasant feathers adorning her headdress, which indicates that this was not designed as a typical tourist trade item which would usually use chicken feathers that did not have the same spiritual meaning within the Hopi tradition.
