Prehistoric Pre-Columbian Casas Grandes Pottery Jar

ca.  1100 - 1400

10" H x 12" D

Hand Coiled Large Plainware with Three Ripples Around Top Neck of Jar and Fire Clouds

In Good Condition with Damaged Chipped Rim

Casas Grandes pottery is the distinctive ceramic tradition of the Casas Grandes culture, a Pre-Columbian (prehistoric) society centered in the Chihuahua region of northern Mexico, with its primary site at Paquimé. This culture flourished roughly from A.D. 1100–1450 (Medio period), peaking around 1200–1450, before the settlements were abandoned.

The pottery is renowned for its high quality, graphic inventiveness, and complex iconography, often ranking among the finest ceramic arts of the ancient Americas. Potters created vessels by hand (typically coil-built), with a buff or reddish slip base decorated in polychrome designs using red, black, brown, and sometimes white pigments. Common forms include globular or tapered jars (ollas), bowls, and distinctive effigy vessels shaped like humans, animals (e.g., macaws, badgers, fish), or other figures.