Leo Lacapa
Snake Dancers
9" total
height
"This is the snake dancer
who is one of the social dancers who used to appear in mid-August
at several of the villages. During the dance performance the
Snake priests, accompanied by the Antelope priests, dance with
live rattlesnakes and/or bull snakes in their mouths.
The live snakes are referred
to by the priests as their 'elder brothers.' These are obviously
not dancers with 'faces' and therefore are not 'Kachinas.' Information
in much greater detail can be found in the books Hopi Snake Ceremonies
by Jesse Walter Fewkes, and Moki Snake Dance by Walter Hough,
both from Avanyu Publishing.
In recent years the Snake
Dance has only been performed at the Second Mesa villages of
Mishongnovi and Shungopavi. There is no difference in the costumes
between the First Mesa variety and any of the other mesas. This
dance has been closed to non-Indians since 1986."
- Ricks, J. Brent, et al.,
Kachinas: Spirit Beings of the Hopi (114)
Leo Lacapa is a carver that
we recommend for the collector who wants a quality piece at a
reasonable price. Leo is from from First Mesa, above Polacca.
His representations are very
accurate, his proportions are very good. One of the reasons that
this is so is that Leo regularly participates in the First Mesa
kachina ceremonies. In his early 50s, he is a long-time carver.
