Greetings! This Guide will give some advice that both new and experienced collectors of kachina dolls (katsinas, or katsin-tihu in Hopi) may find helpful. I'll discuss how best to display your collection, and how to care for it. Advice from experts in museum collection management will also help you understand how institutions maintain their own kachinas. Some traditional knowledge from the Hopi carvers I've spoken with will also add some insight. Please read through and let me know if this guide was helpful for you with a yes or no vote at the end.

A few minutes scrolling through an Ebay search for "Kachina" will show you the vast variety of dolls that are available. This guide is about real kachina dolls--not Navajo fakes--but if you do have a taste for those furry folk art items, there will still be some information here for you.

Kachinas are often classified as either "fine art dolls" or "gift dolls." The former are the lifelike, highly detailed, gallery dolls that many times look as though they could dance right off their bases. Often the bases themselves are highly carved and made to look like mesa-tops, kivas, logs, or other materials. "Gift dolls" on the other hand, while they too may be lifelike in pose and regalia, are often wall-hanging dolls made to be given as gifts by the real Kachinas who dance in the plazas in the Hopi villages. Gift dolls can be modern or made in the old style of 50 to 100 years ago. They are usually made without a base, and are hung on the wall for display.

Kachina dolls that are made with a base--whether it is just a slab of cottonwood or an ornate carving itself--should be displayed on a firm, level surface. I live in earthquake-prone California, so I try to ensure that not only is the doll stable on the surface, but that a fine piece of fishing-line helps secure it from falling. If you have a shelf-full of dolls, one strand of this nearly invisible line strung at about mid-height for the length of the shelf could help save you hundreds of dollars worth of grief. Even if you don't live in earthquake country, you know that floors vibrate, shelves get bumped, and all kinds of other accidents can happen. There are also putty fomulas that can be used to stablize a doll. When in doubt, use both!

Wall-hanger dolls are easy to display because they are usually lightweight and come with a cotton string around their necks, ready to hang. I use regular push-pins for most of the dolls I have, making sure that the string is held tightly to the wall by the pin. Don't just hang the string over the plastic head--these can be slippery. Larger or especially valuable dolls should be hung with a picture-hanger that anchors firmly into the wall and provides a "hook" for the string. If you prefer, all your dolls can be hung this way for extra security.

Kachinas should never be hung in a kitchen or powder room because these areas are full of moisture and pollutants like soap film or grease. Since many dolls are decorated with organic materials (feathers, cloth, yarn, leather, shells...) such pollutants would be highly damaging.

Large museum collections usually have only a portion of their total collection of dolls on display, and rotate them regularly with those in storage. This keeps the display fresh and interesting, but also means that dolls are not exposed to air and humidity at all times; dolls kept in storage are put in drawers deep enough to hold them safely, and are usually supported by chemically neutral padding to protect them further and keep them from moving as drawers are opened. Further, it keeps you from having to find new space on the walls! Since finding appropriate furniture in a home setting could be challenging, I have a bookshelf that I use to store dolls not on display, which keeps them supported and protected.

Dolls should always be kept out of direct sunlight, and away from heater vents or air conditioning units. If there are smokers in your home, try to keep the dolls in an area that receives less exposure, as nicotine can leave a permanent yellow goo on any object.

This brings up an interesting traditional viewpoint. To the Hopi, kachina dolls should be allowed to breathe--they represent living beings and it is not healthy to wrap them in plastic or enclose them in sealed cases. So, while this certainly can preserve the appearance of your kachinas, remember that as representatives of a living religion, they should be handled in accordance to tradition whenever possible.

Caring for your collection could take up a separate guide, but as a basic guideline, one should of course *never* use anything wet or damp to clean a kachina doll. Older dolls have painted surfaces that could be instantly ruined by moisture, and even newer dolls with wood-stain or acrylic paint surfaces could be harmed by the humidity. I have several soft brushes, such as camel-hair watercolor brushes and use these to dust the dolls; these let you be as gentle as you need to be with fragile parts, yet can remove a lot of grime. If you acquire a kachina that is already soiled, a soft (dry) cloth or slightly stiffer brush may help remove longstanding dirt. On the whole, however, remember that less is better, and museum curators will always tell you: when in doubt, do nothing. You will preserve the current value of your doll more effectively this way and not risk damage or disappointment.

I hope this helps! My next guide will discuss repair and restoration--to fix or not to fix!