Object Number: Eb477

Collection: World Cultures

Object Name: photograph

Description: Sepia-toned photograph of an Oraibi-Moki snake dance, August 1896. 22 young men gathered around watching one man with a snake on the ground in front of him. Most are holding snakes. They wear aprons, with fur tails behind them, and have white paint on backs, chests and arms. A white man watches from behind the group. In the distance are people and horses, most seem to be Moqui Indians waiting for the dance. The snake dance is a sacred ritual, to propitiate the water god and ask for rain in a dry land. Performed at Oraibi, the largest town, in even years and at Walpi in odd years, young men brought in 200 snakes from a 4 day hunt, the snakes were danced by the snake priests, then returned to the wild. Rubber-stamped on recto: Santa Fe Route News service / Fred Harvey Mgr / Los Angeles.