Traditional Zia Pueblo Polychrome Olla [R]

Zia Pueblo pottery is among the sturdiness of pueblo pottery, due to it containing ground up basalt or lava as a tempering agent.  Zia stew bowls are considered the best for continuous use as they can withstand hot meals over and over in a short period.  Some of the other pueblos’ stew bowls tend to disintegrate if used daily.  Zia ollas too are most prized as water jars.  The jars are porous enough to allow water to seep through the wall of a jar sufficiently for evaporation and cooling of the water, yet the jar is strong enough to withstand the moisture.

Sofia Medina is certainly one of the best known of her generation of potters from Zia Pueblo.  She married into the Medina family in 1948.  She and her new husband Rafael (1929-1998) lived with his grandmother, Trinidad Medina who taught Sofia the techniques of potting. Her mentor, Trinidad, was one of the most talented potters at Zia and Sofia learned well and produced quality wares throughout her life.  Sofia used all natural materials in her pottery, including the pigments for painting.  Her husband is known for using acrylic paints on pottery after firing.

This jar by Sofia is traditional in every aspect of its creation.  It has basalt as a tempering agent and was formed in traditional coil method, painted with all natural materials and fired in an outdoor kiln.  She decorated the jar with traditional Zia symbols of capped feathers and Zia birds.  She placed her name on the polished red underbody just below the double framing lines in the manner she has always done.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: from the collection of a gentleman from South Carolina

Recommended Reading: The Pottery of Zia Pueblo by Harlow and Lanmon