Navajo Red Pottery

ca. 1980

3.625" H x 5.375" D

Hand Coiled from Natural Red Clay with Carved Design Along Top with Fire Clouds SM Dina

From a Private Colorado Collection

In Very Good Condition

Navajo red pottery is traditional and contemporary ceramic works made by Navajo (Diné) artists, often using naturally occurring red clay sourced from the Southwest region.

Navajo pottery has a distinct history compared to the more famous Pueblo pottery traditions (like Santa Clara blackware or Acoma polychrome). While early Navajo pottery (from the 17th–18th centuries) sometimes resembled Pueblo styles—due to cultural interactions—it evolved with thicker walls, simpler forms, and often minimal surface decoration. Traditional Navajo pots were primarily utilitarian, made by hand-coiling clay, hand-dug from local sources (sometimes mixing different clays), and fired outdoors in open pits or bonfires.