Native American, southwestern United States, New Mexico, Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi) period, Tularosa, ca. 900 to 1450 CE. A stunning pottery bowl of an impressive scale, presenting a globular body, a curved shoulder, a narrow, cylindrical neck, and a gently flared rim, all sitting upon a round yet stable base. Adorned with skillfully painted black on white decoration, the voluminous vessel boasts a complex decorative program of striated, spiral, and geometric designs. First, the exterior of the rim is embellished by 6 square-shaped spirals, each filled with 3 diagonal lines of steppe motif. The base of the neck is then encompassed by 2 circles with the innermost showing a gap known as the "spirit break," believed to metaphorically release the spirit of the potter or any other spirits that may be associated with the materials that make up the pot. Size: 12.7" Diameter x 10.2" H (32.3 cm x 25.9 cm)

A series of 6 outward pointing triangles is placed along the outer circle, forming a 6-pointed star. The remainder of the exterior features 6 rhomboid sections with zigzag borders filled with squares and steppe motif designs, with 6 large spirals below. All is filled with series of tightly packed horizontal and vertical linear striations.

Tularosa pottery from the Starkweather Ruin has been divided into three styles - Wingate, Snowflake and Tularosa - reflecting similarities in decoration with their source types. Classic Tularosa Style designs are based on spirals, a diagnostic feature of the type. However, the spiral-stairstep motif that we see in this example is considered to be the most advanced development.

Many groups of indigenous peoples occupied the Tularosa region before the Apache drove them out in the 1800s. While some settled elsewhere; some groups completely disbanded. The Tularosa Basin in New Mexico was a rich source of Paleo Native American sites. Very little was known about the life of the Tularosa Basin; however, scholars have determined that the Anasazi and Mogollon peoples resided in the Tularosa Basin. The Anasazi culture existed from approximately 200 to 1300 CE, and their movement from the Tularosa Basin to the pueblos of the southwest has been identified. Tularosa is a village in Otero, New Mexico that shares its name with the Tularosa Basin where the town is located.

Cf. Art Institute of Chicago, 1978.316, Cleveland Museum of Art, 1984.159, and Arizona Museum of Natural History, 2012.164.8.

Provenance: private Hidden Valley Lake, California, USA collection

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#170459

Restoration to about 1/6 of body, but only evident on interior. Repaired from several pieces with break lines visible. Some small areas of repainting. A few minor areas of loss along break lines. Two drill holes in 1 area from repair process. Light chipping to rim, as well as expected nicks, abrasions, and pitting throughout, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent with impressive remaining pigments.