Zuni Pueblo Small Heartline Deer Olla [SOLD]

I have been unable to find any published information on Mollie Nastacio other than she was listed in the U. S. Census for 1940 as a resident of Zuni Pueblo and listed under the U. S. Indian Census Rolls for 1885 to 1940.  It is presumed that since her last listing on both reports was 1940, she passed away that year.

This small olla is very traditional in manufacture and design and bears the potter's signature on the underside.  If this jar was made in the last decade of the potter's life, then she must have been one of the earliest potters to sign her work.

It is a charming small olla and bears the hallmark of an older potter which is not to say it is not well made but only to say that the design is not as elaborate as a younger potter might have attempted.  The medallion is simpler in style than most.

Condition: appears to be in very good condition

Provenance: from the pueblo collection of a Native resident

Recommended Reading:  Dialogues with Zuni Potters by Milford Nahohai and Elisa Phelps