The basic function is giving the snakes the prayers of the Hopi people to the cloud people. After the dance the snakes are taken to the edge of the mesa and released, carrying those prayers to the spirit world. This ceremony is NOT part of the katsina cycle. This is also true for the Butterfly, Buffalo and Basket dances are the participants faces are visible. In katsina ceremonies only the face of the katsina is seen.

This unusual set was carved sometime not long after WWII. We based that upon the materials use,d the paints and general carving style.

While the Snake Dance is not one of the most iportant ceremonies among. the Hopi, it has held an ouitsized fascination for the non-Hopi. Crows were coming out as early as the first couple decades of the 1900s. By the 1970s crowds were in the many thousands. It was far, far beyond what a village could handle, so all non-Hopi are no longer permitted to attend.