Tesuque Pueblo Circa 1910 Rain God Figurine [SOLD]

The major market for Indian curios was in Santa Fe during the years 1885 to 1925.  The men who predominated in the market during those years were Jake Gold, Abe Gold, J. S. Candelario, and Frances Lester.  Entries from Candelario’s sales record book illustrates the volume of orders: “Please send us a baggage car with about 200 assorted small pieces of pottery, which we can sell at retail from 15 cents to 25 cents” (September 1904) and “one hundred Tesuque pottery gods, small size, and fifty of the larger size black gods” (April 1905).  In May 1906 the Fred Harvey Company ordered “100 small rain gods, three dozen larger ones.”  Anderson 2002

During this period, the Tesuque potters began abandoning the sole use of micaceous clay and started adding cream slip as a base coat to the rain gods.  Frequently these early cream slip figurines had sculpted hair draped over the forehead and were decorated with red ink.  These date to the early 1900s.

This rain god has all the features of the circa1900 rain gods—cream slip, sculpted hair, and red ink designs.  Additionally, it has sculpted and pierced ears. 

Condition: very good condition with some loss of cream slip

Recommended Reading: When Rain Gods Reigned—From Curios to Art at Tesuque Pueblo by Duane Anderson

Provenance: from the collection of a New York City resident