Adobe Gallery Blog

There was a period in the late 1700s and early 1800s when many Hopi left the mesas and migrated to their nearest pueblo neighbor-Zuni Pueblo.  This migration was the result of drought, disease, crop failure and other disasters. Many of them stayed at Zuni for 20 or more years and it was during that time that the women were exposed to designs on Zuni pottery.  When they returned to their home land, they brought with them the memories of those pottery designs. 

The Hopi potters were very creative and talented artists so it was not in their interest to copy Zuni pottery designs but to use those designs they saw and experiment with expanding them to enhance their pottery.  In the period 1820 to 1860, we see many Hopi pottery vessels with Zuni-inspired designs. 

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