There are hundreds of Hopi Katsinam, "personations" of supernatural
beings, important animals and ancestors who help the Hopi people raise
their crops, their children, and their spirits. The Katsina dancers are
men wearing masks--each of which represents a particular Katsina--and
paint and feathered costumes. Everyone in the village, aside from the
children, knows that the Katsina dancers are actually men from the
village, though Katsinam are still believed to have supernatural powers.
Much of the value in these dances is found to be instructing the young.
Signed and numbered.
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