The headpiece of the Indians - what is it?

When people are asked about the headdress of Indians, the first thing that comes to mind is a crown of eagle feathers. Such impressive dresses can often be seen in Western films and television shows about Indians. Although it is now the most famous type of Indian headgear, it was worn by only a few tribes living in the Great Plains area, such as Sioux, Crow, Blackfeet, Cheyenne and plain Cree. And they wreaths of feathers were different.

Sioux warriors wore headdresses with one or two rows of eagle feathers inserted in order of decreasing length. In the Crow tribe, the elders attended formal events in the headdresses, where eagle feathers fanned around the face. Blackfoot wore high and narrow headdresses, when eagles feathers were in a straight upright position. All these headdresses of the Indians were made from the tail feathers of the golden eagle, and each feather was earned a feat. Sometimes feathers painted in honor of a particular case.

Such wreaths were considered an important ceremonial regalia, and they were worn only by warriors and male leaders. In some Indian tribes, women also went to war, and there were even female leaders, but they never put on the headdress of Indians. Male warriors most often kept their crowns for official events, because fighting on the battlefield in them was inconvenient.

In the 1800s, men from other tribes sometimes began wearing the same headgear as the Indians of the Great Plains. Part of this was due to the fact that many Indian tribes, moving to Oklahoma, began to adopt certain attributes from their new neighbors. In most cases, the Indian headpiece was not of much importance to them. This was a tribute to fashion or the general symbol of power. But for the tribes of the Great Plains the crown of feathers was a sacred symbol of honor and courage, and every pen was the result of a heroic story. Even in our time, Indians of this region, serving in the armed forces or performing any feats, are sometimes awarded eagle feathers.

Most of the tribes living to the east of the Rockies wore a headdress of Indians called "roach". It was made of hard animal hair: Porcupines, moose and deer, which were attached to the base in such a way that on the head it looked like a comb. Often the hair was painted in bright colors and added to them shells and other ornaments. In some tribes, men cut their own hair under the style of roach, and also put on artificial roach. In other tribes, these headgears, attached to the head with leather bandages, were worn over long hair and braids. Today, this type of wearing is most often found.

Roach was usually worn by warriors and dancers. Its meaning varied from tribe to tribe. In some tribes this headdress of Indians was worn, going into battle. In others he was part of a solemn outfit. Like all styles of clothing, rouchi sometimes went out of fashion, and sometimes they became fashionable again. As a rule, they did not have an important spiritual significance, and the boys earned the right to wear a roach already at the first important ceremony. Currently, such headgear can often be seen on Native American healers who still wear them as regalia.