Antique Hopi Pueblo Polychrome Pottery Bowl

ca. 1920

2" H x 6" D

Hand Coiled with a Particularly Strong Painting of a Double Bird Motif Design

In Very Good Condition

Hopi Pueblo polychrome pottery bowls are iconic examples of Native American Southwest ceramic art, particularly from the Hopi (and often Hopi-Tewa) people in northeastern Arizona.

Made from local iron-rich clays that fire to a distinctive golden-yellow, buff, orange, or reddish hue. They are traditionally hand-coiled (not wheel-thrown), smoothed, slipped, and pit- or coal-fired at high temperatures.

Polychrome means multiple colors—typically black (mineral paint), red (iron-rich slip or paint), and the natural or slipped background (yellow/buff/cream/white). Designs are hand-painted with fine brushes made from yucca or other plants.