Zuni Communal Serving Bowl, circa 1875 [SOLD]

Zuni Pueblo pottery from the 1760 to 1860 period has been named Kiapkwa Polychrome.  Traits of Kiapkwa Polychrome are black rim tops and red slip on the underbody.  A decade later (1870), changes began to be noticed.  The red underbodies began to be painted over by black pigment.  It took several decades for the transition to be complete.  The red bottoms disappeared completely by 1895.  Other changes occurred on jars but less noticeably on bowls.

Exterior designs on this bowl are similar to those collected by Stephenson that date to circa 1870.  The “crooks” seen on the inside of the bowl were described by some Zuni potters as representing drumsticks.  There are crooks connected to crooks in one part of the design.  The parallel black lines within the stepped framework are a portion of a Rain Bird design and they have been referred to as “keys.” 

When examined closely, it can be noticed that most of the interior designs appear to have been painted totally in red slip, then overpainted in black pigment, a trait that occurred on the underbodies of bowls, but not on this one as the underbody is red.

Missing on the interior of this bowl is a band of design at the rim.  Almost all Zuni bowls have a rim design but this one was omitted.  It is quite likely that this bowl dates to circa 1875, based on the above descriptions.

Condition: very good condition for its age

Recommended Reading: The Pottery of Zuni Pueblo by Harlow and Lanmon.  This book is currently not available from Adobe Gallery.

Provenance: from a private collection