Orange-Red Slip

PLATE 20aCutting the top from an olla which had cracked slightly at the rim during the final sun-drying. The raw edge was afterwards worked down to form a new rim, and the vessel was successfully fired.bApplying white slip with a cloth mop. The enamelled pan containing the prepared slip is on the bench at the potter’s side. A number of vessels are slipped at one time.

PLATE 20

Cutting the top from an olla which had cracked slightly at the rim during the final sun-drying. The raw edge was afterwards worked down to form a new rim, and the vessel was successfully fired.

Applying white slip with a cloth mop. The enamelled pan containing the prepared slip is on the bench at the potter’s side. A number of vessels are slipped at one time.

This slip is applied only to the bases of vessels (ollas and certain bowls) and to the interior of the lips of ollas. Before burning it is mustard-yellow in color, but after firing it becomes orange-red. A cloth mop is used for application in the same manner as with the white slip; one coat only is applied to each surface.

As a rule the vessel being slipped is held in the lap, the mouth vertical and turned to the left (pl. 21, a). The left hand is placed in the interior to support it and keep it turning counterclockwise, that is, the upper part is turned away from the body, as the strokes are taken towards the body. The formation of the junction-line between this base-slip and the body-slip is very carefully handled. No attention is paid to the lower edge of the body-slip, except to notice its general location, for the base-slip covers it and itself produces the edge. This upper line, made by long, careful, slow, trailing strokes of the mop, is drawn entirely free-hand, yet the potters succeed surprisingly well in keeping it always the same distance from the centre of the base. Three or four strokes are more than sufficient to encircle the vessel (pl. 21, a). It is often possible in the finished piece to trace the lower edge of the body-slip, under the orange-red coating. After the junction line has been drawn, the rest of the base is covered with shorter forward-backward strokes. The application of the orange-red slip to the interior of the lips of ollas is done with the same careful, slow technique used in forming the junction-line near the base of the body; during the process the vessel is held on the palm of the hand right-side up. The exterior of shallow bowls which receive no white slip is completely coated with the orange-red, the bowl being inverted over the left hand during the application.

The orange-red slip may be put on either before or after the painting of the design; if before, the painting may be begun at once; if after, the application may be delayed until within an hour or two of burning. If the vessels are set aside for a while at this stage, they are covered with a cloth to keep the dust and flies away. The time element is practically the same as in the case of the white slip.

The red slip, as was said above, serves to cover the surfaces of undecorated red-ware. It is always polished with the rubbing-stone after application. When given a certain special firing (see p. 74) it turns a lustrous black and so produces polished black ware (pl. 8, b). This slip is a saturated solution in water of the red clay just as it was obtained from the claypits (see p. 24). Although undissolved lumps remain at the bottom of the solution, the latter is no thicker than water. The containers are either open-mouthed pottery bowls or china dishes. The slip is applied as usual with a small folded rag. While it is being put on, the vessel may be hung from the fingers of the left hand with the mouth vertical, or held in the usual way upon the palm of the left hand, its position depending upon whether or not the base is to be slipped. The surface is covered two or three times with the cloth mop, in a rather haphazard manner, so that certain portions where the strokes overlap receive as many as four coats. The potter herself is uncertain regarding the number of coats the surface has received, as they are applied one immediately after theother, with no wait between. The mopping is stopped when the surface seems uniformly covered with just the right shade—a rather bright red. San Ildefonso potters usually cover with this slip the entire exterior of small ollas and bowls, including the base.[41]In some cases shallow open-mouthed bowls are slipped only on the interior.

Before the slip dries, the rubbing with the polishing-stone is begun. The stone is held between the thumb and first two fingers of the right hand. The entire surface is gone over several times with a backward-forward motion in strokes about three or four inches long.[42]Each stroke is made with the entire forearm, there being no noticeable play in either the wrist or the fingers. This is a rather fatiguing and exacting process, for to obtain the best results all parts of the surface must receive equal attention: a definite system, however, has been developed by means of which the entire surface is gone over.

In polishing the exterior of a small olla or of a bowl, the vessel is first placed upon the lap in an inverted position, tilted slightly to the right. It is held at the rim by the left hand, which rests upon the left thigh. The polishing is begun on the right-hand side of the base near the body, and proceeds diagonally across the base to the far left-hand side. The vessel is then tipped up with the mouth to the left and the rim nearly vertical. The polishing is begun at the shoulder and continued down to within a very short distance of the centre of the base (pl. 21, b). At this stage some potters polish from the base to the shoulder. As the work continues, the upper part of the bowl is turned counterclockwise away from the body. Usually the stroke is parallel to the rim, but occasionally a diagonal motion develops. The strokes across the bottom are then made at right angles to the previous series. A constricted-mouthed bowl is then turned so that the mouth, still vertical, is to the right, and the section from the lip to the shoulder is polished; the bowl is now turned clockwise, that is, the top still turns away from the body. Small ollas may be held either in this position or with the mouth tilted at an angle of about forty-five degrees to the left and away from the body, in which case the polishing is done from the shoulder to the lip (seepl. 30, b, which shows a Zuñi potter using the polishing stone).

After the surface has been completely covered in this manner once, and none too carefully, the rim is coated with the slip, applied by the forefinger of the right hand, and gone over with the stone. The vessel is then wiped with a cloth upon

PLATE 21a. Applying orange-red slip with a cloth mop; the beginning of the stroke may be seen just above the lap of the potter. b. Polishing a bowl with a small stone after red slip has been applied. The marks of the stone are visible at first, but quickly disappear as the slip dries. c. Women working with the polishing stone. Note the light line about the shoulder of the large olla, where a space is always temporarily left unpolished.

PLATE 21

a. Applying orange-red slip with a cloth mop; the beginning of the stroke may be seen just above the lap of the potter. b. Polishing a bowl with a small stone after red slip has been applied. The marks of the stone are visible at first, but quickly disappear as the slip dries. c. Women working with the polishing stone. Note the light line about the shoulder of the large olla, where a space is always temporarily left unpolished.

which a little lard has been rubbed. The lard may be kept near the potter in any convenient receptacle, like a sauce-dish or the bowl of a spoon. A clean cloth is then immediately used to distribute the lard evenly upon the surface, and to remove any surplus. Some potters do not use this second cloth at all; others apply the lard to the vessels with their fingers, wiping it immediately afterwards with a cloth. In some cases, the application of the lard is withheld until the polishing is entirely completed.

The polishing is then continued in exactly the manner just described. The surface is covered more carefully and more slowly, the areas worked upon often overlapping considerably. A cloth, sometimes a part of the potter’s apron, is now between the left hand and the vessel in order to protect the smooth surface. A considerable pressure is exerted. Some women use a short, very quick stroke; others a somewhat longer, slower stroke, hence taking more time for the work. In this way the surface is covered several times. Finally the routine treatment is dropped, and finishing touches are given by polishing small areas here and there which do not show the required amount of lustre. The strokes used at the end are usually slightly longer than the previous ones. Finally, after the stone has been laid aside, the surface is wiped once with a clean cloth before the vessel is set aside; it is usually placed upon a mat or cloth in order that the base may not be scratched by contact with the earthen floor. When the polishing of several vessels has been completed, they are gathered in a corner of a room on a mat or rug, and covered with a cloth to keep the flies and dust away, for it is said that fly-specks leave a black mark upon the burned vessel.

In the case of large ollas one half of the vessel is doubtless coated with slip and polished before the other half is slipped. This is the process employed in polishing large ollas slipped with dark-red (see p. 63). No opportunity presented itself to see a large polished olla being made.

In polishing the interior of a shallow bowl, the vessel is held in its normal position, tilted slightly to the right, and resting upon the right knee and the palm of the left hand, which in turn, rests upon the left knee. The polishing is done from the lip to the centre of the vessel. As the work advances, the bowl is turned counterclockwise.

The degree of polish obtained by different potters varies considerably, and yet in even the very finest examples of polishing the marks left by the stone may be faintly seen in certain lights in the form of exceedingly low ridges, generally running roughly parallel to the rim and too low to be felt with the fingers. The surface has a lustre almost equal to that of burnished metal. In pieces which are not as well polished, the ridges are higher and may be felt with the fingers; indeed they are often prominent enough to make the lustre uneven. Maria Martinez, who does the best polishing, is also the swiftest worker in the village. From the moment the vessel is picked up to apply the slip until the completion of the polishing, it is not laid down for an instant. Her strokes are quicker than those of the other potters; she covers the surface in much less time and therefore polishes a given area more often before the slip dries. Continued polishing tires the wrist and hand very quickly and is apt to produce cramps. Other potters are inclined to rest for a fewminutes from time to time, especially after the application of the slip and again after the lard has been put on. One woman complained of the humid weather, because it did not allow the slip to dry quickly enough. The potters themselves say that streaky polish is due to lack of persistence on the part of the polisher. Maria attributes her success to the fact that she uses a faster stroke and puts on a little more lard than the others. Large vessels usually have a poorer polish than small ones. The secret of good polishing seems to lie in the ability of the potter to go over her work as many times as possible after the slip has been applied and before it becomes too dry.

The time during which the vessel being polished is actually in the hands of the potter is given in Table VII. The first column (A) represents a constricted-mouthed bowl, about eight inches in diameter at the shoulder and four inches high, which was polished by Maria. In one hour and fifteen minutes elapsed time three such bowls were done, an average of twenty-five minutes for each. The second column (B) represents the polishing by another potter of the interior of a shallow wide-mouthed bowl. The actual time from the moment the bowl was picked up for the application of the slip until the polishing was done was forty-one minutes. A rest of one minute was taken after the slip had been applied, another of thirteen minutes after the application of the lard, in order to let the bowl “dry”, and a third of one minute when the final polishing was about half done. The interior of this bowl was a very fine example of polishing.

The dark-red slip is a mixture of red slip, native white slip, and tempering material. It is applied to vessels which are later to receive a black design (seepl. 7, a, b). It is mopped on with a cloth in exactly the same manner as the red, and is also polished with a stone but never acquires as high a lustre as does the red. There seems to be a tendency for the first coat of this slip to dry more readily than the first coat of the red slip.

While applying the slip to small ollas about six inches in diameter, the vessel is held by the rim with the left hand. Either the entire exterior may be slipped, or the base may remain uncoated, to be covered later with the orange-red slip. The slip is first applied to the rim, the forefinger being used instead of a mop. During this process the vessel is right-side up either in the lap or on the floor. The body is then slipped with the cloth mop, and the polishing done in two parts, with theshoulder as the dividing line. In polishing the lower part the strokes begin at the base, or at the lower edge of the slip in case the base has not been coated, and proceed upward to the shoulder. The direction of the strokes is practically parallel to the rim. The upper part is polished from the shoulder to the lip. On the base, if it has been slipped, the strokes are first made in one direction, then at right angles to that direction. From time to time, as the polishing proceeds, the vessels are set aside in order to allow the slip to dry somewhat. They may even be placed in the sun or near a fire on the hearth. The potters explain that if the work is completed while the slipped surface is very damp, the resulting polish will not be as high as when the slip is just drying. Apparently, the work done just before the surface becomes dry plays an important part in securing a high lustre. One of the potters working on this ware applied a little lard to the surface after the polishing had been completed. Another potter used no lard whatever for this class of ware.[43]When the polishing has been completed the vessel is placed in the sun or near a fire to dry thoroughly before it is put away to await decoration. While the olla is drying it is covered with a cloth to protect it from flies.

In polishing larger ollas one half of the vessel is coated with the dark-red slip and polished before the other half is slipped. Either the half above the shoulder or the half below the shoulder may be polished first. Rather quick strokes, three or four inches long, are made with the stone. Sufficient pressure is exerted to cause motion in the entire body of the worker. The strokes, as before, are usually parallel to the rim. Because of the larger surface to be covered in these vessels, the position of the olla on the lap of the potter is changed frequently. It is supported with the left hand, which is placed palm down upon the exterior surface. While the lip is being polished, the mouth is turned toward the body and to the right, making an angle of about sixty degrees from the horizontal. In polishing the upper part of the shoulder the potter turns the mouth to the left and away from the body (pl. 21, c). Usually the mouth is more nearly horizontal in this position than in the former.

Before applying the slip to the lower half of the olla, a faint line is drawn with the polishing-stone around the lower part of the body to define the lower edge of the body-slip. During the slipping and polishing of this portion of the surface, the olla is held with the mouth nearly vertical and to the left, directed away from the body. When the polishing proper is completed, the finishing touches are given to the entire exterior by rubbing small areas here and there which do not entirely satisfy the potter.

As in the case of the red slip, the polishing must be completed before the slip becomes too dry. When there is a large surface to be polished, as in the case of these ollas, it is of course necessary that the work upon any given section of the surface be completed as quickly as possible. Therefore when two potters are working together, the swifter of the two does the polishing on the larger vessel, regardless of which of the two applies the slip. After the polishing proper has been completed, the olla may be turned over to the slower worker for the finishing touches. This necessity for speed in polishing is probably the reason for slipping only a part of the surface at one time.

Now and then, as the polishing proceeds, the potter changes stones. An important factor in this change is the desire to rest the fingers through the slight alteration in grip afforded by the different shapes of the stones. Occasionally the change is due to a wish to obtain a stone with just the proper shaped surface for the section of the olla being worked upon. There is also a tendency to use a larger, rougher stone at the beginning of the work, for which is substituted later for the final finish a smaller, finer-grained, and therefore smoother, stone.

Because of the practice of slipping and polishing only half the surface at a time, there develops around the shoulder a narrow line of dried slip, which is naturally lighter in color than the worked areas. (This line may be seen encircling the olla in pl. 21, c). After the polishing of the upper and lower areas has been completed, the potter’s attention turns to this line, and since dry slip cannot be polished, the rubbing stone is either wet with the tongue or dipped into the liquid in the slip-container before being used on the line. The latter method appears to give the best results, but in either case, the moistening of the stone is done very frequently, and the process of eliminating the lighter line is a painfully slow one. Even when the best results have been obtained, the line is not entirely obliterated. Occasionally the stone is moistened with the tongue while giving final touches to other parts of the surface.

When the polishing with the stone has been entirely completed, a little lard is rubbed on the surface either with the forefinger or with a greasy cloth; the surface is then vigorously rubbed with a chamois.[44]This distributes the lard evenly and very noticeably improves the lustre. Then the vessel, after being covered with a cloth, is put in the sun to dry thoroughly.

The great difference in the time required for polishing large and small ollas requires two tables to present the details. Table VIII gives the time during which a large olla, about fourteen inches in diameter at the shoulder, was under the hands of the potters. The time devoted to obliterating the light junction-line, about fifteen to twenty minutes, was considerably longer than usual. Table IX gives the time required for three small globular ollas, about six inches in diameter at the shoulder. The surface of each of these was approximately the same as that of the polished black constricted-mouthed bowl recorded in Table VII.

Three varieties of paint are employed in making the designs—the black, or guaco, which is used on red and polychrome wares, the orange-red (also used as a slip), which serves as a paint in filling certain spaces in the designs upon polychrome ware, and the black ware paint which produces the designs upon polished black ware.[45]

The consistency of the guaco, when dissolved in water and ready for use, varies from that of water to that of thick cream. The solution is sticky and has a characteristic odor. A thin solution when applied to the surface of a vessel is yellowish-green, and has much the same appearance as a fresh coat of the orange-red paint. After drying the two are easily distinguishable. A thick solution of guaco is dark brownish-green when applied to the vessel, and on drying has a noticeable “body”, so that the lines appear slightly raised and glossy. It is not possible to draw as fine a line with the thick solution as with the thin one.

The orange-red is never used in painting lines, but only for filling areas, and is therefore always applied with a medium or heavy brush.

In preparing the black ware paint, a slight amount of guaco is added as an adhesive, and the solution is often stirred with the fingers in order to insure complete dissolving of the coloring matter. When first applied to the vessel, this paint is almost transparent; as it dries it becomes yellowish.

The principal precaution taken when painting is begun is to guard against flies. They eat the moist guaco, causing blank spaces in the lines, and also make fly-specks on the slip which turn black in the firing. The room is therefore cleared of flies as far as possible, and great care then exercised to keep the door shut. The painter watches the pot constantly, and often interrupts her work in order to brush a fly from the design. If it is necessary to do the painting out of doors, the services of an assistant are required to wave a cloth back and forth across the top of the vessel to keep the flies away.[46]When the work has been completed the vessels are immediately covered with a cloth.

The receptacle for paint may be either a small open-mouthed pottery bowl or a china sauce-dish. During the painting it is on the right side of the potter within easy reach, either on the floor or on a low stool. In it is always a stirring-stick.

PLATE 22Painting designs on small vessels. The decorator’s right hand does not come in contact with the pot, and the tip of the brush is trailed rather than stroked across the surface. a. Maria Martinez. b. Maximiliana Martinez.

PLATE 22

Painting designs on small vessels. The decorator’s right hand does not come in contact with the pot, and the tip of the brush is trailed rather than stroked across the surface. a. Maria Martinez. b. Maximiliana Martinez.

The brushes are usually kept in the paint, or occasionally beside it, and sometimes a pencil is also near at hand (pl. 23, a).

In decorating the exterior of a constricted-mouthed bowl, the vessel is held upright and inclined very slightly towards the body; it rests on the left knee and is steadied by the pressure of the left hand against the interior of the rim (pl. 22, a). The potter sits in a position which allows the light to come over her right shoulder directly upon the section of the bowl being painted. As the work proceeds the vessel is turned counterclockwise. When the design extends slightly below the shoulder, the bowl is inclined to the left and away from the body. If a considerable portion of the design is below the shoulder, the vessel is inverted and is supported by the fingers of the left hand against the interior base of the bowl.

If the interior of an open-mouthed bowl is being painted, the enclosing lines near the rim are made first. During this process the bowl is held with the mouth vertical and to the right, while the lines are drawn on the lower part of the interior rim. The vessel moves counterclockwise. The bottom of the interior is painted with the bowl standing in its normal position on the left knee, the mouth inclined to the right and toward the body.

When a large vessel, such as an olla, is to be painted, it is placed upon a box or table of the proper height, which has previously been covered with a rug or mat to protect the base (pl. 23). The painter chooses her position so that the light will fall over her shoulder upon the vessel. During the painting of the upper part of the vessel it is touched with the left hand only when it needs to be turned. In working below the shoulder the vessel is tilted slightly to the left, and away from the painter.

The paint-brushes are made of slivers of yucca (fig. 5). They may be roughly grouped into three weights—fine, medium, and heavy.[47]The fine ones are used in making outlines on the smaller vessels; the medium ones either for line work or for the filling of small areas; and the heavy ones for filling only. During the painting there are from three to six brushes in the paint vessel. These brushes are of such durability that the potters have no definite idea of the length of their usefulness. Since the fibres are brittle when dry, brushes are occasionally broken by accident; to prevent such breakage they are soaked in water for a few minutes to soften them before they are used.

The brush is held in the right hand, with the fingers in the position used in holding a pencil or pen. The ends of the fingers are two or three inches from the tip of the brush (pl. 22, a, b.; pl. 23, a). The fingers of the right hand do not rest upon the surface of the vessel and the entire right arm is unsupported (pl. 23), although at times the elbow may be unconsciously steadied against the body. The straightness and evenness of the lines drawn under these conditions are remarkable.

There is a slight personal variation in the method of contact of the brush with the vessel. One potter uses only the tip of the brush; another first places the tip upon the surface, and then makes the line with the body of the brush; a third places the body of the brush upon the vessel at the first contact. In making a line a trailing stroke is invariably used; its direction is usually toward the body, but occasionally away from it. The brush is always moved slowly, and the angle at which it is held varies according to the part of the surface over which the line is being drawn, and upon the part of the stroke which is being made. At the beginning of a stroke the angle is an acute one, varying from forty-five to seventy degrees (fig. 8, a); about the middle it approximates ninety degrees (fig. 8, b); while at the end it is often an obtuse angle of as much as one hundred and twenty degrees (fig. 8, c). On small vessels the strokes seldom exceed four inches in length; on larger pots they are sometimes as much as six inches long. After each stroke the brush is dipped into the paint vessel; it is then always drawn across the stirring stick, which is kept

Fig. 8.Angles at which paint-brush is held during a long stroke; a. Beginning. b. Middle of stroke. c. End.

there, in order to remove excess paint before being applied again to the surface. Even after this precaution more paint occasionally remains on the brush than is needed; in such a case the excess is removed by touching with the tip of the brush various larger areas which will later be covered with paint.

The width of the lines drawn is largely dependent upon personal variation, although the type of design also governs their width to some extent. Exceedingly fine lines, for example, would obviously look out of proportion in a bold design upon a large olla. The lines vary in width from one-thirtieth to one-tenth of an inch; the great majority are between one-fifteenth and one-twentieth. Lines one-eighth or one-quarter of an inch wide are in reality double, that is, they actually consist of two lines painted so close together that they touch along their entire length. Still wider lines are made by two parallel lines, with the space between filled up. Some potters simply make the line once, retouching it only in small sections which most plainly require such treatment. Others go over each line at least twice in order to insure a constant width.

PLATE 23Decorating large ollas. Note the unsupported arm of the painter and the length of the brush. On the bench in front is the paint-cup with stirring-stick and extra brushes (Antonita Roybal).

PLATE 23

Decorating large ollas. Note the unsupported arm of the painter and the length of the brush. On the bench in front is the paint-cup with stirring-stick and extra brushes (Antonita Roybal).

From the point of view of technique, the lines upon the exteriors of small vessels, such as constricted-mouthed bowls, may be divided into two groups—the long enclosing lines and those within panels. In forming the enclosing lines, especially the long horizontal ones, the vessel is turned while the brush remains almost stationary. There are two methods of forming such long horizontal lines, which of necessity are made of a series of relatively short strokes. In one case the growth of the line is in the same direction as the strokes, that is, each stroke begins at the point at which the previous stroke ended. In this method the vessel is turned counterclockwise. In the other case the growth of the line is opposite to the direction of the stroke, that is, each stroke is begun a short distance beyond the end of the line and is drawn to meet the beginning of the previous stroke, the vessel being turned clockwise. In either case the fingers of the left hand, which hold the pot by the interior of the lip, are spread far apart in order to insure the constant and regular motion of the vessel. When the lines within a panel are being drawn, the procedure is just the reverse. The bowl remains stationary while the brush is drawn across it. Occasionally lines which are nearly horizontal are drawn first in one direction, then in the other. In some cases, when long diagonal or curved lines are being made, the vessel is turned very slightly counterclockwise.

Large vessels, such as ollas, remain stationary while the brush is being drawn across the surface, and are turned only when a new area is to be worked upon. Lines within panels are usually made with a single stroke of the brush, for it is seldom that a diagonal or curved line within a panel is more than four or five inches long. In large open designs the long lines, both straight and curved, are often drawn in two parts. Crosshatching is made by two sets of parallel lines crossing each other. Dotting is done with the tip of the brush touched lightly to the surface. Spaces are filled with a heavier brush by means of many short strokes. As a rule the strokes begin at the upper right hand corner of the area and proceed downward. In filling spaces, as in drawing lines, some women go over their work only once, others apply two or three coats in order to insure even distribution of the paint.

Some potters exhibit much sureness of touch and confidence in their own ability; their designs are executed without hesitation, but at the same time slowly. Others make hard work of the painting, seem uncertain, and occasionally stop to rest and inspect the symmetry of the pattern.

There are two general points in the painting of vessels which should be emphasized. The first is the remarkable steadiness of the painter’s hand. It seems almost incredible that such straight, unwaving, even lines can be drawn by a hand which is supported only by a completely free arm, and guided merely by the end of the brush. The second is the fact that the men often assist in the painting of designs. They may either execute a complete design upon a vessel, or relieve the painter from time to time during the construction of large patterns. This is the only phase of the actual manufacture of pottery in which the men of the village take part.[48]

The firing of the vessels is not only the last major step in the making of pottery, but it is also the most critical one. The supreme test of the potter’s work is to subject it to the fire, for many forms of accident occur during the process, some of them due to careless handling of the vessels or of the firing materials, others to defective workmanship or to hidden flaws in the paste. It is only natural that the potters should exhibit considerable excitement and nervousness during the firing. Some women proceed calmly and methodically, and take occasional accidents as part of the day’s work; others are exceedingly nervous, and show exasperation when things go wrong. The latter, as a rule, have more accidents than the former. One potter, in six burnings, lost two large ollas through breakage, and had innumerable smoke-clouds, several of them rather severe ones.

The firing falls naturally into four distinct phases: the preparation, the building of the oven, the burning, and the treatment after burning. Each of these phases will be considered separately.

The oven is usually situated behind the potter’s house. All that is required is a level space free from vegetation; no attention is paid, as a rule, to the position of the sun or to the direction of the prevailing wind, and the same spot is used time after time. If on the evening before the firing there are any signs of rain, or if a heavy dew is expected, the area on which the oven is to be built in the morning is covered with a thick layer of dead ashes to protect it from moisture. It would be a fatal mistake to make the oven on ground which would give off steam during the burning.

About six o’clock the next morning a fire is started on the area over which the oven is to be built. While this preliminary fire is thoroughly drying the ground, the accessories are collected (pl. 24, a). Slabs of dung are brought out from the storage places; some of them are placed against the house wall to dry in the sun, others remain in the washtubs in which they have been carried. The material for the grate, and other iron bars, are placed nearby. Pokers of wood and iron, shovels, and sometimes pitchforks, which are to be used later in handling the burning fuel and hot vessels, are placed within reach. When a collection of small tin cans, pail-tops, and small stones saved for this purpose has been added, the workers are ready to begin the burning. Usually a supply of cedar kindling has been split, but sometimes this is done as the wood is needed.

When the preliminary fire has died down to a mass of coals, these are levelled to form an area of hot ashes about three feet in diameter. On this the oven is built. The surface upon which the vessels are placed must be raised a few inches

PLATE 24a. Drying the oven site with a preliminary fire before burning the pottery. At the lower right-hand corner are an old iron grate which will later support the vessels, two iron rods to hold up the roof of the oven, and a wooden poker. Cakes of dung for the oven walls are drying in the sun against the house.b. The vessels on the grate, and the oven wall of dung cakes begun. Small tin cans support the cakes and keep them from touching the vessels. The grate rests on stones, and split cedar kindling is placed below it on the embers of the preliminary fire.

PLATE 24

a. Drying the oven site with a preliminary fire before burning the pottery. At the lower right-hand corner are an old iron grate which will later support the vessels, two iron rods to hold up the roof of the oven, and a wooden poker. Cakes of dung for the oven walls are drying in the sun against the house.

b. The vessels on the grate, and the oven wall of dung cakes begun. Small tin cans support the cakes and keep them from touching the vessels. The grate rests on stones, and split cedar kindling is placed below it on the embers of the preliminary fire.

above the ground to permit the introduction of fuel below the pottery. Such a surface is usually formed of iron rods of one kind or another. One potter built up a grate of a varied assortment of iron junk supported on tin cans and odd-shaped iron fragments. Another potter used a worn-out stove-grate supported on four half-bricks.

The vessels are then placed upon the grate in an inverted position. No attempt is made to keep them from touching one another. In fact, they are crowded together in order that the greatest possible number may be burned at once (pl. 24, b). In firing red ware and polychrome ware only one layer of vessels is placed upon the grate. When polished black ware is to be burned, two layers may be made. The vessels in the second layer are always placed carefully between those of the bottom layer, in order that there may be free circulation of air on both the interior and exterior of all the vessels (pl. 25, a). As a rule the larger bowls are placed in the lower layer.

The number of polychrome vessels burned at one time varies from half-a-dozen to twenty, according to the area of the grate and the size of the vessels. At one burning there were eleven pieces, eight medium-sized and three small; in another there were twenty, eight of which were medium-sized, and the other twelve very small. It is possible to burn as many as thirty-five polished black bowls at once. Some potters burn both polychrome and red pottery in the same oven; others insist that this should not be done, because red ware requires far less time and heat than does polychrome.

After the pots have been placed on the grate, pieces of split cedar six to fifteen inches long are inserted underneath it. Piñon is never used, but the potters could not explain this, saying they had never tried it. A wall-like ring of dung-cakes, placed on edge but not set as snugly together as they might be, is then built around the grate (pl. 25, b). Small tin cans, held in place by the weight of the dung, are used to prevent the cakes from touching the vessels (pi. 24, b, shows one of these cans very clearly). Sometimes small stones and broken bricks are used in place of cans. While the ring is being completed more kindling may be added. The Zuñi oven differs from that of San Ildefonso in being built of smaller pieces of manure which are laid up horizontally instead of on edge (seepl. 31, b, c).

The fire may now be lighted before the oven is finished, but sometimes the potters wait until the roof is nearly complete. Cedar-bark shreds are generally used to start the fire. The lighting is done through the spaces between the dung-cakes, usually at more than one place, sometimes in as many as five. No attention is paid to the wind in this process. If the fire does not start quickly enough, cloths are used to fan the flames.

The roof or vault of the oven is then built. Some potters place iron bars across the top of the dung-ring, keeping them from touching the vessels by inserting tin cans and stones. On these bars flat cakes of dung are laid, and the larger holes are covered with smaller pieces of dung. Other potters dispense with the bars and rest a large circular cake of dung upon cans and stones set in the centre of the pile of pottery. The space between this central cake and the top of the dung-ring is bridged by other cakes which rest on the dung alone. In this manner a low vault of dung-slabs is formed, roughly square in shape, two and a half to three feet on aside, and about a foot and a half high (pl. 25, c). There are still left numerous spaces, both large and small, between the cakes. These are covered with smaller pieces of dung, and with old tin tops of lard-pails or discarded tin plates (pl. 26, a). Even after this, however, there remain enough small spaces to allow free circulation of air, and to prevent the smothering and consequent smoking of the vessels. Through these smaller spaces the flames and pots may be seen. The building of the oven is now complete; by this time the fire has usually been started, and the flames are well under way.

As a rule more than one burning is undertaken during a morning. The building of the oven for the second burning differs slightly in its preliminary stages from that described above. After the previous oven has been destroyed, the ashes are smoothed out, and the grate set straight and carefully dusted so that no ashes remain (pl. 26, b). The bowls are than placed on it as before. Partly burned cakes of dung, which remain from the first burning, are re-used. If, in placing them on the oven, ashes drop on the vessels, care is taken to blow them off.

Some potters stand the vessels which are to be burned on the warm cakes of dung for a few minutes before placing them on the grate (pl. 26, b), a process which is supposed to heat them slightly and thus prevent breakage during firing. Other potters would not think of doing this, for vessels treated in this manner always have discolored bases, where the warm dung has touched them.

Ollas twelve to fourteen inches in diameter are burned in pairs, with a few smaller pieces beside them. The oven is built in the same manner as before. Very large ollas are usually fired one at a time; the oven, except for its greater size, is said to be of the usual type.

As was said above, the firing of the pottery is done in the morning. The Indians say that they wish to get it over with “before the sun grows hot”. Their own personal comfort probably plays a more important part in this than does the effect of the sun upon the pottery. As a rule the firing is withheld until a sufficient number of finished vessels have accumulated to permit three or four burnings in one morning. The entire forenoon is spent at this work, and sometimes it drags over until early afternoon. The actual burning of the vessels occupies a period of about half-an-hour for each oven; it is said that the length of time has not been appreciably shortened in the past forty or fifty years. The black ware is always saved for the last oven, since the process employed completely precludes the possibility of rebuilding the oven at once.

At the beginning of the burning white smoke is apt to be given off, but too much smoke is regarded as a bad sign, since it signifies that the dung cakes are not sufficiently dried. After fifteen minutes or so, that is when the process is about half finished, the amount of smoke has greatly diminished (pl. 26, a). About this time more kindling is added through openings made by temporarily removing a piece of tin, and new cakes of dung are added where necessary, usually on the top of the oven.

The Indians say that they judge of the condition of the pottery in the oven by its color; the paste and slip must be of just the proper shade before the vessels are

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