Kewa Pueblo Chile Bowl with Excellent Patina [SOLD]

This Kewa (Santo Domingo) Pueblo polychrome chile bowl probably dates to the first half of the 20th century. It has the traditional rag-wiped bentonite slip, black rim around the top, and a wide red band wiped below the decorated section. The main body is decorated in a single extremely bold design that is an arrangement of black triangles strategically placed to form the desired design.   It is one of the most traditional designs seen on Kewa bowls.

The interior of the bowl has developed a beautiful dark and rich patina from years and years of use at the pueblo prior to being on the market for sale. The exterior patina is equally rich in color from many years of handling.

Traditionally, the owner of a serving bowl will carve her initials or name or write it in red finger nail polish on the outside of the piece prior to taking it to the plaza during a Feast Day ceremony to insure that she gets it back after the day's festivities. When one sees this, one can be sure the bowl was made for use in the pueblo and was well used during meals at home and servings at Feast Day. The owner of this bowl, however, carved her initials on the exterior of the bowl in the wide red band.  Someone scraped off the initials.

Condition: there are two rim chips, otherwise the bowl is in wonderful condition

Recommended Reading: A River Apart: The Pottery of Cochiti & Santo Domingo Pueblos by Valerie Verzuh, et al

Provenance: from the extensive collection of a Santa Fe resident who is unfortunately moving to another city and found it necessary to greatly reduce her collection.