James Plympton (20th Century) Native American, (2) Kachinas. Female figure titled "Lady Dancer," signed on base "Jim Plympton, Pyramid Lake, NV." Male figure titled "War Dancer," signed on base and dated "'95."

James (also known as Jim, Jimmy, and JP) Plympton was born on the Paiute Reservation in the area of Pyramid Lake in the mid-20th Century. He served in the United States Navy during Vietnam and was elected to the Tribal Council in 1998. In addition to illustrating children's books in the 1970s and sculpting kachinas in the 80s and 90s, he established the non-profit Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Veterans and Warriors Organization and remains active in the tribal community, currently residing in Nixon, Nevada. 

Condition: Feathers on war dancer are little bent. Shield appears to be unglued from left hand on war dancer. 

Tallest: 6 x 5 1/2 x 14 in. 

#3442 #4 

A kachina is a spirit being in the religious beliefs of the Pueblo people, Native American cultures located in the Southwestern part of the United States. Kachina rites are practiced by the Hopi, Hopi-Tewa, Zuni peoples and certain Keresan tribes, as well as in most Pueblo tribes in New Mexico. The kachina concept has three different aspects: the supernatural being, the kachina dancers, and kachina dolls (small dolls carved in the likeness of the kachina that are given only to those who will be responsible for the respectful care and well-being of the doll and the spirit it embodies). Kachinas are personifications of things in the real world that are believed to visit Hopi villages throughout the year. A kachina can represent anything in the natural world or cosmos from a revered ancestor to an element, a location, a quality, a natural phenomenon, or an   abstract concept. There are kachinas for the sun, stars, thunderstorms, wind, corn, insects, animals, war, famine, plague, and more. Although not worshiped in the Judeo-Christian sense, each is viewed as a powerful being who, if given veneration and respect, can use his particular power for human good (or sometimes as punishment), bringing rainfall, healing, fertility, or protection, for example. Beginning around 1900, the growing tourism industry generated a great deal of interest in the Kachina figurines, and the dolls became sought-after collectibles. For this reason, many Hopi began carving the figures commercially to make a living, the process, legality, and religious implications of which are still controversial and hotly debated within tribal groups. Of the nearly one hundred known kachina, Köcha Mosairu, called the White Buffalo, is the rarest and most revered of all the mesas and pueblos, and their appearance symbolizes major changes in the environment and the annihilation of the human race in preparation for the Fifth World.

Feathers on war dancer are little bent. Shield appears to be unglued from left hand on war dancer.