Acoma Pueblo four-color Olla with Parrots [SOLD]

There is a photograph taken by A. C. Vroman which he labeled "Acoma, Mary holding olla 1900" in which he shows a beautiful young pueblo woman holding a stunning jar decorated with parrots, rectangles, and hooked bars almost identical to this jar we present here.  It has been accepted for decades that this photograph is of the potter Mary Histia.  Recently, the authors of a forthcoming book on Acoma pottery are postulating that the young lady in the photograph is not Mary Histia.  I do not believe they state who the person is, only that she is not Histia. 

The potter placed four distinct areas of design stacked above each other.  The lowest design band consists of one continuous line of rectangular orange bars, outlined in black, that zigzag around the jar.  Above this level of design is a chain-line element of ovals, each containing small black dots and a pair of larger black dots.  A continuous chain of rectangles fills the mid-body of the vessel.  Some of them are orange boxes with cream centers and some are paired orange rectangular bars with black half-moons at their ends.  The final touch is a combination of exquisite parrots and floral elements. Each parrot has a diamond design on its body and circles on the tail feathers.  Some of the parrots are orange with grey elements and others are grey with orange elements. 

Until proven otherwise, we are going to continue attributing jars with this combination of design elements to the famous and outstanding Acoma potter, Mary Histia.  But, if it turns out that someone has ample proof that the photo is not of Histia, then we would have to say that the jar is an outstanding Acoma creation by an unknown potter but that does not diminish it beauty or collectability.  It was beautifully executed and stands as testament to a 20^th -century master potter.

Condition:  excellent condition

Provenance: from the collection of a New Mexico family

Recommended Reading:  Pottery of the Pueblos of New Mexico 1700-1940 by Jonathan Batkin