Native American Pottery Beginnings

Native American pottery began as useful utensils and has evolved into beautiful Indian art. Indian pottery from an Indian pueblo of the southwest can be rough with dark earth tones like Hopi Indian pottery or highly polished pieces with hand painted designs or fine quality thin walled such as Tigua Indian pottery. Pueblo pottery has been sought after for years. The variety of Indian pottery is exciting for collectors because there seems to be no end to Indian pottery styles. American Indian pottery has always been a part of Native life. In recent years the resurgence of collecting Indian pottery has been fueled by the revival of ancient traditional Mata Ortiz pottery in the Casas Grandes region of Chihuahua. 

The wide appeal of this traditional Paquime Indian pottery has helped the Native American potter in other southwestern areas such as the Tigua Indian pottery artists who create hand painted pottery in traditional colors and styles. Tarahumara Indian pottery pots or ollas are used for a variety of cooking purposes. An Indian pottery olla may be used to cook beans, boil corn with lime for making tortillas, roasting corn for pinole, and in the larger pots, for making the Tarahumara traditional corn beer, tesguino. Indian pottery is made in different sizes and shapes which define the use of a particular pot.

Tarahumara Indian pottery art is simple and functional. The first step in any Native American pottery making is to gather clay. This may require a trip of several miles. Once the clay has been obtained, it is ground on a stone metate because Indian pottery requires a fine clay powder. Water is then added to this mixture and it is kneaded until the right consistency is achieved. When it is time to begin making pottery, the base is formed first and the sides are built up using coils of clay. The olla is a traditional basket or vase shape and pottery bowls are usually low rise with a simple rim. Native American Indian pottery including Tarahumara Indian pottery is formed by hand, by the coil and pinch method, with out the use of wheels. A piece of gourd, stone or wood may be used to smooth Tarahumara Indian pottery and scrape away roughness. After drying in the sun, a hot fire is made in a shallow pit and the pot is fired. 

When Tarahumara Indian pottery is decorated, the paint is obtained from red ochre, iron oxide or hematite and applied with the fingers or by means of a feather or cloth-wrapped stick. Southwest Indian pottery making is definitely a rich tradition among all Native Americans and collectors are captivated by Indian pottery works. Watching Indian pottery being made and then holding it in our hands seems to span generations and connect us with Indian potters from years gone by. Native American pottery is a piece of culture and history.

See our Native American Pottery Galleries