Featured HELP IDENTIFY UNSIGNED NATIVE AMERICAN POT

HELLO ALL....thanks in advance for your help...interesting piece of pottery thats approx 11 inches tall by 12 inches wide..no signature....i purchased it years ago as a pueblo native american pot...it does not look wheel thrown but it looks like it was constructed in layers..im ot sure of the correct term..also the fact that its unsigned im thinking its an older pot...thx again andy

 

The technique is called coiling. Coiling of rolled clay, like it is a rope. The coils are pressed together, smoothened and polished, in this case probably using a smooth stone.

It is a real beauty, I'm sure one of the others will be able to tell you more.

 

As someone who just completed a beginners ceramics class, it's not as easy as it looks! Generally, you make a base and coil the pot around it, but I'm fairly certain with a narrow neck, you coil the pot by itself and then attach the bottom because otherwise you wouldn't be able to reach inside to smooth it. I'll have to ask the instructor when I go pick up my fired pieces.

 

Definitely coiled and hand-made, and definitely Mata Ortiz.

There's many discussions on this forum about Mata Ortiz and how it is not actually Native American but is more contemporary and Mexican. In the 50-year history of Mata Ortiz pottery, this is an older one.

 

thank you all for your help

 

seems most mata ortiz is signed...would it have been a better piece if it was signed ???

 

Look for a very faint inscribed signature. Mata Ortiz names are often inscribed.

 

would a faint signature only be on the bottom or could it be anywhere on the pot....thx andy

 

Yeah usually near the center of the bottom.