Southwest Indian Pottery

For many centuries, the indigenous Pueblo peoples have been making pottery for utilitarian and ceremonial use. Their works are made without wheels, molds, or kilns, instead being coiled and shaped by hand before being fired outdoors in earthen pits. In the 1880s, anthropologists and tourists arrived and began acquiring Pueblo pottery vessels. Eventually, a market would come to be, which would lead to pottery styles evolving as the vessels’ purposes shifted from use to display.

The Pueblo potter possesses an innate talent in the fine and applied arts. She—and he, more recently—is a born artist, possessing a capacity for discipline, careful work, and a fine sense of line and rhythm. Some of their jars were made for use at the Pueblos in the daily lives of the households, and some were made for sale to tourists and collectors. Regardless of intent, the artistic treatment was the same.  Whether made for use or made for the market, these vessels are true expressions of potters' artistic talents. They are strong personal expressions, as well—the designs applied to these pottery pottery pieces draw influence from spiritual practice, ancestral artworks, and daily Pueblo life, which means that each piece is linked to its creator in many significant ways. Each of these pottery vessels is a testimony to the incredible talent of the Pueblo potter, even when the potter’s individual identity remains mysterious.

We offer a wide variety of historic and contemporary pottery pieces, with focus on exceptional functional pieces and the works of influential Pueblo matriarchs. Whether old or new, each of these pieces was made using the traditional methods and materials.

Above Image: The potters are identified as Potchangwe, Nuva, and Gweka.  We are appreciative to Hopi-Tewa potter, Mark Tahbo, for sharing this photograph with us.  The photograph was recently found in a burned out home at First Mesa.

Note: click on any of the ORIGIN links (below or to the right) to see all of the Pottery items we currently have from that Native American Nation.