Rotational bands feeding the ground state and the isomeric state in the proton emitter 141 Ho were observed using the recoil-decay tagging method. This constitutes direct evidence that 141 Ho is deformed. A quadrupole deformation of b 2 0.25͑4͒ was deduced for the ground state from the extracted dynamic moment of inertia. Based on observed band crossings and signature splittings the 7͞2 2 ͓523͔ and 1͞2 1 ͓411͔ configurations were proposed for the ground state and the isomeric state, respectively. Comparison with particle-rotor calculations for b 2 0.25 indicates, however, that 141 Ho may have significant hexadecapole deformation and could be triaxial in the 7͞2 2 ͓523͔ ground state.The domain of nuclei situated far from the line of b stability has always been an arena of numerous experimental pursuits and a testing ground for new theoretical models. With radioactive beams on the horizon, the physics of nuclei with an excess of neutrons or protons has become one of the focal points of nuclear physics. These nuclei define the very limits of nuclear existence and will be susceptible to phenomena associated with low binding energy, such as halos, skins, or mixing between bound and continuum states.The proton separation energy decreases with decreasing neutron number. Proton-rich nuclei, which have a negative proton separation energy and are, thus, situated beyond the proton drip-line, can spontaneously emit protons. The proton decay rate is governed by the energy and orbital angular momentum of the emitted proton. It also depends on the wave function of the proton-decaying state, which is determined by the shape of the nuclear potential and by residual interactions between valence nucleons. Most of the known proton emitters have decay rates consistent with the as