Hopi Pueblo Pottery Seed Jar - flying bird: Jean Sahme Nampeyo (1948-2024)

Late 20th Century/Early 21st Century

3" H x 5" D

Excellent Condition

Jean Sahme Nampeyo (1948–2024), also known as Sak’Honsee (“Tobacco Flower Girl”), was a respected Hopi-Tewa potter from First Mesa (Polacca), Arizona. She belonged to the renowned Nampeyo family of potters, one of the most influential lineages in Native American pottery.

Family Lineage
Jean continued a multi-generational tradition tracing back to the legendary potter Nampeyo of Hano (c. 1859–1942), often called the “Mother of Hopi Pottery.”

Mother: Priscilla Namingha Nampeyo
Grandmother: Rachel Namingha Nampeyo
Great-grandmother: Annie Healing Nampeyo
Great-great-grandmother: Nampeyo of Hano

She signs with a corn plant and a fish. The corn plant stalk represents the Hopi-Tewa Corn Clan of which Jean is a member. The four leaves represent her two children and her two grandchildren whom Jean mentored. Jean started potting in 1965. Her work can be found in various galleries, private collections, museums, colleges, and universities in the United States and around the world. In 2014 Jean became an Arizona Living Treasure.