Native American, Southwestern USA, Colorado or New Mexico, Anasazi / Ancestral Puebloans, Pueblo II, ca. 900 to 1150 CE. A wonderful, hand-formed ceramic pitcher presenting a concave base and curved walls that rise to a broad, flat shoulder, a narrow neck, and a gently flared lip, all flanked by twin lug handles. Adorned with Mesa Verde style black-on-white decoration, the ancient vessel boasts a lovely pattern of concentric triangles along the shoulder, while a pair of horizontal bands encircles the neck. This vessel was made by hand coiling pottery, smoothing it, and baking it in an open-air fire. This type of vessel was made for carrying water, with a narrow neck to prevent evaporation and allow a plug. Size: 6.6" Diameter x 4.4" H (16.8 cm x 11.2 cm)

Vessels from this tradition were made from a gray or white clay with angular fragments of temper and this one has a pearly gray-white slip that was then overpainted with a black pigment made from carbon. Largely, these were made by women who lived in cliff dwellings like those seen at Mesa Verde National Park - indeed at the Park, there is a large house containing 94 rooms, a kiva, and a water reservoir, known as Mug House because its European discoverers, Charles Mason and the Wetherill brothers, found three mugs hung in one of the rooms from a rope of woven yucca.

Provenance: private Eagle, Colorado, USA collection, acquired in the 1990s

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#168263

Restoration to 1 handle. Expected abrasions and pitting, commensurate with age. Coils of pottery visible on interior of neck. Otherwise, excellent with impressive remaining pigments.