Native American, Southern United States, Mississippi County Arkansas, Quapaw culture, ca. 1500 CE. A fabulous red on white pottery vessel, with a globular body and short neck. The base is rounded but stable, and a stripe motif of brick-red pigment on a creamy white slip is painted vertically from the neck towards the base. The Quapaw were Native Americans who lived in four villages along the Mississippi River in what is now Arkansas from ca. 1500 through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The tribe was divided into two large moieties (divisions) - Earth and Sky - and twenty-one clans. Elegantly hand-built and brilliantly hued ceramics like this example are some of their most lasting artistic achievements. The iconography on these pieces offers intriguing glimpses of their cultural/religious beliefs and practices. This is a fine example with a strong decorative program! Size: 9.23" Diameter x 8" H (23.4 cm x 20.3 cm)

According to the Museum of Native American History (MONAH), "The artistic design that went into decorating these pottery vessels varied by region, but nowhere had it surpassed the expert craftsmanship and artistic design that was found by the inhabitants that lived in the area now known as modern day Arkansas. The Arkansas area was occupied by three major groups during this period: the Caddo in the southwest, the Quapaw along the lower Arkansas River, and a group simply called the Mississippians in the northeast."

This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full printed and bound report is available to the buyer upon request.

Provenance: private Kansas City, Missouri, USA collection; ex-John Townsend collection, formed in the 1970s and earlier

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#161645

Rim repaired from approximately 4 pieces with resurfacing around rim and along break lines. Losses along break lines and chips to rim. Body repaired from two pieces with resurfacing and overpainting on break lines. Surface abrasions, chipping and fading of pigments. Two TL holes on base and rim. Earthen encrustations on interior.