Hopi Tasapkatsinam footage, Sitsom’ovi (1926) – Clifford Paul

6 minutes. [Not viewed]

Background/content: The tasapkatsinam are katsinam figures who perform in what the Hopi perceive to be the manner of a Navajo Yei Bichei masked dancer.

This material was shot by the amateur film-maker Clifford Paul (1892-1960) who toured the Hopi region whilst working as a chauffeur for the director of a farm machinery company.

It was shot in June-July 1926, probably at the First Mesa village of Sitsom’ovi. It may be the only film in existence of a traditional katsinam performance.

It was reported in 1988 that Paul’s daughter, Ethel Armstrong of Roswell, New Mexico, intended to deposit the film with the Museum of Northern Arizona. However, it does not appear in the listings of Arizona Archives Online (AAQ).

Text: Lyon 1988: 245, 263.

© 2018 Paul Henley