It's virtually impossible to begin writing about The Kachina Doll without first exploring the rich history behind these treasures.

The first people to arrive on the American continent did so by crossing the Bering Strait between 15,000 and 40,000 years ago, arriving in Alaska from Asia.

Theories on their travel range from sailing in kayaks, walking across an ice cap to the possibility of a land bridge connecting Asia to North America. Whatever their mode of travel, over thousands of years, these Paleo- Indians migrated across the face of the North American continent.

The ancestral heritage of the tribes which now occupy the Southwestern United States, is derived from three distinct prehistoric cultures. The Anasazi (a Navajo word meaning "ancient people who are not us"), The Hohokam and The Mogollon.

It is believed that sometime between 900 and 1100 AD, the Anasazi cultural dominance absorbed much of the Mogollon culture reaching a total meshing around 1450. It is also believed that this merging contributes to the cultural background of the Hopi, Zuni and Acoma.

When referring to the Navajo or "Dine" (Navajo for the People) in contemporary terms, we are speaking of those Native Americans who now occupy the American Southwest.

The Navajo arrived here much more recently than the ancestors of the Pueblo People referred to above. They come from a region in Alaska called Athapaskan, arriving here about the same time as the Spanish.

Merging many of the cultural traditions of their adopted heritage with their own, the concern of the Navajo suggests a refined set of values: order, stability, harmony and the interaction and interrelatedness of all things.

These values are all contained in the concept of" hozho", a central principle of Navajo religion, philosophy and aesthetics. The term is roughly translated as "beauty," but its broad meaning has no exact equivalent in English. Hozho expresses the intellectual concept of order, the emotional state of happiness, the moral notion of good, the biological condition of health and well-being, and the art characteristics of balance, harmony and beauty.

The relationship of art to the concept of hozho is especially interesting. For the Navajo, a finished work of art must incorporate the elements of hozho and communicate to the viewer just what it is to achieve the condition of hozho.

All who participate in a creative action must thus be in a state of hozho. All aspects of Navajo culture are interconnected through their association to hozho.

The finished piece, from the Navajo perspective, is merely the vehicle whereby beauty, hozho, is transmitted from an artist who is in a state of beauty, to a recipient or audience. The end result is that the receiver will also be brought into a state of beauty through viewing, wearing or appreciating what the artist has created.

All of which finally brings us to authentication. Discussing the history, names and spirituality of The Kachina Doll will be left for another time.

Given the brief narrative here, perhaps one can grasp a better understanding of the importance of insuring that you are collecting a representation of the ancient history of a very proud heritage.

All Navajo artisans authenticate their work with their name or initials and a census number for verification.

If you purchase a contemporary Kachina that does not carry these identifiers, this is an indication of two distinct possibilities.

The first possibility is that you have a genuine artifact created before authentication became necessary. If this appears to be the case, we recommend you have the item appraised.

Genuine artifacts are difficult to find outside of museums. If you are ever approached to purchase such an item, it is recommended that you proceed with extreme caution. These items are sacred to native americans and the purchase of an artifact may involve you in a fraudulent situation.

The second and more prevalent possibility, is that you have purchased a "knock-off." Authentic Navajo Kachinas are not turned out in a factory. Each is a unique, hand crafted work of art representing the hozho of the individual artist.

Respect the hozho living within The Kachina Doll. Make certain you are buying from a reputable dealer.

Patty Baldwin (c) 2001

******************************************************* Patty Baldwin is a former Better Business Bureau executive and the owner of 4Bs Trading Company. A successful net marketer, she invites you to stop by and browse the store at: http://www.4bstrading.com

******************************************************