San Ildefonso Pueblo Pictorial Olla [SOLD]

Martina Vigil Montoya (1856-1916) and Florentino Montoya (1858-1918) are considered to be among the best San Ildefonso potters of the late 19th century. This is a beautiful example of what we think is Martina's and Florentino's work, encompassing a great many of the characteristics for which their pottery is so well known and highly regarded.

Attributing work to long-deceased artists is always subject to questions, but sometimes the work just seems to fit the hands of certain artists and it is not wrong to speculate that it was made by them.  That is the case with this San Ildefonso jar.  It has design elements that have been associated with Martina and Florentino.

Jonathan Batkin, in an article in American Indian Art Magazine in 1987 illustrated a number of vessels by this famous couple and there are designs in those that are easily recognizable in this jar.  The kite-like elements suspended from the framing line at the shoulder are illustrated in several of the published pots.   The cresting wave-like elements around the neck that have white centers are easily recognizable as neck decorations in some of the published pots.   This jar has the Cochiti slip that is known to have been used by Marina and Florentino, even though they were from San Ildefonso Pueblo.  Potters at San Ildefonso started using Cochiti slip round 1905 because it didn't require stone polishing—only rag wiping.

Similar pictorial elements like the two birds and the human-like figures do not appear on any of the published pottery by this famous couple but that does not preclude them having made this jar.  We feel that there are sufficient similarities to known examples of their pottery to attribute this jar to their hands.

Condition:  There is a lateral and vertical crack on one side of the jar both of which have been stabilized with glue without any plaster fill or over-paint.  The jar is in stable condition without any restoration, only stabilization.  There is one small pin-head size hole.

Provenance: from an Albuquerque gentleman.

Recommended Reading:  Batkin, Jonathan. " Martina Vigil and Florentino Montoya: Master Potters of San Ildefonso and Cochiti Pueblos." American Indian Art Magazine, vol. 12, Number 4, autumn 1987, pp. 28-37.