Is the Hopi Kachina doll more important as a piece of art, or as a religious symbol for the Hopi?

Question

Imagine that a museum has just acquired a Hopi Kachina doll. The Hopi people want it back because it is sacred to them.

Answer 1

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Answer 2

Not being Hopi i can only extrapolate from my modest amount of study in the area.  Unquestionably, the carved figures are very artistic and beautiful and intriguing and can be viewed as "art".  

But beyond that fact, i believe that each figure if created by an "in tune" artist, and by that i mean a Hopi carver, with true knowledge of the Hopi mythology, is also a container for the sacred energies associated with the Being it represents.

In a real sense, then, each figure properly created is a religious icon which carries the "power" of the subject Being.  Those sensitive to "energies" can feel the emanation of the Being's "presence/vibration".

One of my personal favorites is the "Blue Star Kachina", which, as i recall,  is associated with the Sirius star system.  And, as the Hopi prophecy says:  When the Blue Star Kachina appears in the sky,  the Fifth (new) World will arise.    

This arising is viewed as very auspicious for us here on Earth, i believe. Here's some info on point:

http://www.crystalinks.com/hopi2.html             and

http://21dec2012.tribe.net/thread/0b26e2...

Thus, it is sacred art, and, as such, would be of great importance and significance for "the people".