SYMBOLISM[52]

PLATE 35Black design on red jar by Antonita Roybal (the small drawing above shows how this design is applied to the olla).

PLATE 35

Black design on red jar by Antonita Roybal (the small drawing above shows how this design is applied to the olla).

Symbolism of one kind or another, plays a very important part in the existence of the Pueblo Indian. It is generally agreed that even the minor acts of everyday life have a certain religious symbolic meaning. For example, the gourd spoons, or kajepes, used in moulding pottery, must apparently be consecrated before they may be used. Similarly, a new technique in pottery making must pass through a period of consecration before it becomes completely established. On the other hand, white men often overemphasize the importance of symbolism in studying any civilization whose customs and philosophy differ radically from their own.

In the light of what is known of the mental attitude of the Pueblo Indian, it would not be unreasonable to assume that the designs on their pottery have some symbolical meaning. Whether this symbolism is in any sense religious, or is merely the symbolism of conventionalization of design, is an open question.[53]It is probable that vessels made before the time when pottery became to some extent an article of commerce between the Indian and the tourist, bore designs of symbolical meaning. It may be that the vessels made today for their own use also have such meanings, but there is every reason to believe that much of the ware now turned out by the San Ildefonso potters for sale to tourists bears designs of no special meaning.

It is true that through bitter experience, the Indians have learned to guard carefully their religious and secular philosophy, and it would require many years of study, living with them, to gain an intimate knowledge of their beliefs. If, however, there are definite meanings associated with the designs upon commercial pottery, the inhabitants of San Ildefonso have become past masters of the art of concealment.

An attempt to obtain some idea of the general reason why vessels are decorated and of what was taking place in the mind of the painter while at work, proved wholly fruitless. Inquiries as to the meaning of whole designs, figures, and elements met with three kinds of response. One family, who have enjoyed considerable contact with investigators of Indian customs, were ready and eager with explanations of the meanings of various elements. They could not, however, explain the meaning of the entire design upon any vessel. Other potters met the inquiry with a frank statement of ignorance, such as “I don’t know”, or “Ask the men, the women don’t know”. A third group exhibited great uncertainty. These people would usually translate the questions into Tewa for the benefit of the rest of the Indians present. Then, after much laughter and discussion, the potter wouldsometimes offer a meaning, at other times say nothing. One old man explained with great gusto that the design which he had just finished upon a small globular olla represented four small clouds sailing across the sky, one behind the other, from west to east. His manner was very similar to that which one of us might adopt in telling an improbable yarn to a particularly guileless listener.

Some potters gave meanings for whole figures. Another potter, however, composed her figures as the work advanced, evidently with no clear idea, when she began it, of the ultimate form of the figures and therefore probably with no idea in regard to their meaning. It has been suggested that minor variation in similar figures on the same vessel have some meaning. The more probable explanation would seem to be that these variations are due to the lack of a visible pattern. At one time a potter was distinctly annoyed because she noticed, after completing a figure, that she had filled the wrong part of a small detail.

It is equally fallacious to lay too great importance upon alternating figures in a panel design. For example, one potter in filling the areas in a four-panel decoration filled the same areas in the first and third panels, and different areas in the second. When she began to fill the areas of the fourth panel in the same way as the first and third, her attention was called to the areas in the second, the order of which she obviously considered a mistake. The result was that the fourth panel was filled as the second had been, thus giving the vessel a panel-design with alternating figures.

The fact that in excavations no two vessels have ever been found with identical designs has been attributed to something in the Indian’s way of thinking. Yet one potter at San Ildefonso placed upon one constricted-mouthed bowl out of a group of vessels a design identical with that on a bowl of the same shape in the previous group made.

Among older pots the “line-break”, a small space left in the horizontal enclosing-line at the lip of the vessel, is a constant element. At San Ildefonso its use has become almost obsolete but one of the informants did employ it. Careful questioning on the subject with another potter as interpreter, brought out the fact that the line-break is called a “door”, through which a spirit may enter or depart. Persistent questioning in regard to the nature of the spirit caused an animated discussion among those present. The potter was clearly puzzled by the questions. Then, after a single sentence by her, the Indians all laughed heartily. Finally, the interpreter stated that the potter had said, in effect, that if the door was going to cause all that trouble she would close it. The matter was finally settled by the interpreter, who pointed out a passage in the advertising pamphlet of a Santa Fe curio-dealer which explained that the line-break was a passage through which the spirits of the dead might pass.

The ready answers given by some potters in response to inquiries as to the meaning of elements of a design, seem to show that the elements are actually conventionalized symbols of definite objects. In one instance the potter, on noticing a dance-costume lying on the bed, pointed out certain parts of it, and then drew the elements representing those parts. Other potters simply deny all knowledge of the meaning of elements. Still others by their hesitancy, seem togrope for a plausible meaning and offer the first which occurs to them. Whether the elements do represent definite objects or not, it nevertheless remains a fact that the meanings given cause apparent contradictions. To elements essentially the same widely different meanings are often given and, conversely, the same idea or object

Fig. 11.Elements of design commonly used by the potters of San Ildefonso.

is often represented by entirely different elements. This is also true of more complex figures.

The elements illustrated in figure 11, give examples of the type of idea or object said to be represented, and incidentally illustrate some of the contradictions spoken of above. Numbers 1 and 6 both refer to hills. On the other hand, No. 7is a mountain, although it bears little resemblance to the “hills”. It resembles more closely No. 2 which one informant described as a pueblo and another as a kiva. The same regular zigzag appears in No. 12, which represents a tablita, or dance mask, with small feathers tied to the points of the zigzags. No. 17, in which the zigzag also appears, represents kiva-steps. Nos. 11 and 16 represent feathers, and No. 21 is a bunch of feathers on the end of a dance-pole. But No. 22 represents the poles of the kiva-ladder, and No. 3 is rain, which is falling a long way off. No. 10 represents fringed woolen armlets, and yet there is as close a resemblance between Nos. 3 and 10, as there is between Nos. 14 and 19, both of which represent the tassels on a man’s dance-belt. No. 8 is called rain-water, but a single spiral, as in No. 25, is a buffalo horn. The dots of No. 13 represent rain-drops in dust, but in No. 21 the dots are markings on feathers, and in No. 15 they represent a procession of bugs on the rib of a leaf. No. 18 represents water dripping through a hole in the roof and making a small cup-like depression in the floor, represented by a semicircle, or a whole circle with a dot in the centre of it; but No. 23, which is also a triangle, is called a leaf, as is also the case with No. 15. And yet No. 4 is also a leaf, although if placed horizontally it more closely resembles the clouds represented in No. 5. But No. 9 is also a cloud, this time a big black cloud with an open space in it through which a small cloud may be seen. Nos. 20 and 24 represent respectively the sun and a star.

In the light of the small amount of material obtained on the subject of symbolism, all that can be said is that the evidence is purely negative. If the elements do represent definite ideas and objects, which seems to the writer improbable, the meanings are so deeply hidden that only an intensive specialized study will result in an acceptable solution.

(M.—Maria. A.—Antonita)

FOOTNOTES:[1]A brief history of Pecos, and a description of the work so far done at the site, are contained in “An Introduction to the Study of Southwestern Archaeology, with a Preliminary Account of the Excavations at Pecos”, by A. V. Kidder; No. 1 of the present series.[2]Kidder, 1924.[3]Kidder, M. A. and A. V., 1917, p. 330.[4]A searching study of San Ildefonso decoration has been made by K. M. Chapman of Santa Fe. When this is published it will throw much light on the morphology of Pueblo design, and upon the relation of San Ildefonso symbolism to that of other Rio Grande pueblos.[5]A vocabulary of the Tewa terms for clays, paints, and other ingredients; articles of paraphernalia; types of pottery; processes of pottery making, etc., was recorded by Dr. Guthe, and is available at Andover for consultation.[6]See Harrington, 1916, Map 19, point 63. Under the nearby point (60; p. 314) he says: “Clay ... is obtained at this place; just where could not be learned.”[7]Stevenson, to whom with Mrs. Stevenson we are indebted for practically our only comparative material, wrote in 1879 of Zuñi: “The clay mostly used by the Zuñians in the manufacture of pottery is a dark, bluish, carbonaceous clayey shale found in layers usually near the tops of the mesas” (1883, p. 329). Later, Mrs. Stevenson described at some length the ceremony of securing pottery clay (1904, p. 374). Among the San Ildefonso Indians of today there is no outward evidence of any such ceremony.[8]At Zuñi the ingredients are ground and mixed, and the clay is kneaded on a stone slab. (See pl. 28, facing p. 76.)[9]Stevenson said, in speaking of Zuñi pottery making: “This carbonaceous clay is first mixed with water and kneaded as a baker kneads dough until it reaches the proper consistency” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson describes the preparation of clay at Zuñi as follows: “The clay is ground to a powder and mixed with a small quantity of pulverized pottery, fragments of the latter being carefully hoarded for this purpose. The powder thus compounded is mixed with water enough to make a pasty mass, which is kneaded like dough. The more care taken in pulverizing the material and the more time spent in working it, the finer becomes the paste. When the mass reaches such a state of consistency that the fingers can no longer detect the presence of gritty particles, it is still more delicately tested with the tongue, and when found to be satisfactory it is placed in a vessel and covered with a cloth, where it will retain the moisture until wanted for use” (1904, p. 374-5).[10]Stevenson (1883, p. 329) says: “With this (clay), crushed volcanic lava is sometimes mixed; but the Zuñians more frequently pulverize fragments of broken pottery, which have been preserved for this purpose. This seems to prevent explosion, cracking, or fracture by rendering the paste sufficiently porous to allow the heat to pass through without injurious effect.” And again: “The clays used by the Santa Clara Indians are of a brick-red color, containing an admixture of very fine sand, which, no doubt, prevents cracking in burning, and hence dispenses with the necessity of using lava or pottery fragments, as is the custom of the Indians of the western pueblos” (1883, p. 331). Binns, in “The Potter’s Craft”, describing the preparation of clay, says, “If the clay prove very sandy it must be washed, ... but all the sand should not be removed. Clay with no sand in it will be apt to crack in drying and burning. Clay with too much sand will be short and brittle in working. If the clay is very smooth and shows no sand, a little fine builder’s sand may be added with advantage, a definite proportion being used and recorded” (1910, p. 40).[11]Stevenson, in his catalogue of Zuñi collections, enumerated “Tierra amarilla, or yellow micaceous clay, of which the Rio Grande Indians make many varieties of vessels” (1883, p. 368).[12]Harrington, in speaking of a clay-pit near the village of Las Truchas, writes: “It is said that at this place the best red pottery clay known to the Tewa is obtained. It is pebbly, but makes very strong dishes, and it is used especially for ollas. It is said that Tewa of various pueblos visit this place frequently and carry away the clay. The clay deposit is a mile or two southeast of Truchas town” (1916, p. 340). This may be the claypit referred to by the informant, although the clay, while pebbly, is by no means red.[13]Stevenson, writing of the Zuñi, said of their white slip: “A paint or solution is then made, either of a fine white calcareous earth, consisting mainly of carbonate of lime, or of a milk-white indurated clay, almost wholly insoluble in acids, and apparently derived from decomposed feldspar with a small proportion of mica” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson, in a later publication, said: “A white clay is dissolved in water and then made into cones which are dried in the sun. When required for use these cones are rubbed to powder on a stone, again mixed with water, and applied in a liquid state to the object” (1904, p. 375).[14]Harrington mentions this bed as “a deposit of bright red paint situated about two miles east of Santa Fe, the informants think north of Santa Fe Creek, in high land a few hundred yards from that creek. This paint was used for body painting. It is said that Jicarilla Apache still go to the deposit to get this paint and sometimes sell it to the Tewa” (1916, p. 354). Stevenson is speaking of the black ware of Santa Clara and other Rio Grande pueblos, mentions “a solution of very fine ochre-colored clay” (1883, p. 331), which was probably this same substance. Mrs. Stevenson also mentions “red ochre” (1904, p. 375).[15]Stevenson, writing of the Zuñis in 1881, said: “The material used to produce the red or brown colors is a yellowish impure clay, colored from oxide of iron; indeed it is mainly clay, but contains some sand and a very small amount of carbonate of lime”; it “is generally found in a hard, stony condition, and is ground in a small stone mortar ... and mixed with water so as to form a thin solution” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson added later: “Ferruginous clays which on heating burn to yellow, red, or brown are employed for decorating” (1904, p. 375).[16]Peritoma serrulatum(Pursh); synonyms:Cleome serrulata, andCleome integrifolia; (Wooton and Standley, 1915, p. 290). Stevenson wrote: “It is said that among the Cochiti, Santa Clara, and some other pueblos a vegetable matter is employed to produce some of their decorative designs; this, however, I was unable to verify, though some of the Indians assured me of the fact, and furnished me a bunch of the plant, which Dr. Vasey, of the Agricultural Department, found to beCleome integrifolia, a plant common throughout the Western Territories” (1883, p. 331). Again, “That of the decorated class is ornamented with the juice ofCleome integrifolia, which is fixed to the ware in the process of burning” (loc. cit., p. 430). Harrington writes: “This is a very important plant to the Tewa, inasmuch as black paint for pottery decoration is made from it. Large quantities of young plants are collected, usually in July. The plants are boiled well in water; the woody parts are then removed and the decoction is again allowed to boil until it becomes thick and attains a black color. This thick fluid is poured on a board to dry and soon becomes hardened. It may be kept in hard cakes for an indefinite period. When needed these are soaked in hot water until of the consistency needed for paint. Guaco is also used as a food. The hardened cakes are soaked in hot water, and then fried in grease. The finely ground plants are mixed with water and the liquid is drunk as a remedy for stomach disorders; or sometimes fresh plants wrapped in a cloth are applied to the abdomen” (1916, a, pp. 58, 59). (It should be noted that the accounts obtained by the writer from the informants of San Ildefonso do not agree in detail with the one given by Harrington.) Mrs. Stevenson wrote of Zuñi: “Water from boiledCleome serrulata(Mexican name waco) is mixed with black pigment (a manganiferous clay containing organic matter) in decorating pottery” (1904, p. 375); and in more detail: “The entire plant, minus the root, is boiled for a considerable time, and the water in which it is cooked is allowed to evaporate. The firm paste secured from precipitation is used in conjunction with a black mineral paint for decorating pottery” (1915, p. 92).[17]Stevenson, in 1879, saw the Rio Grande Pueblo potters use “coarsely broken dried manure obtained from the corrals”, and added that for the polished black ware “another application of fuel, finely pulverized, is made” (1883, p. 331).[18]Stevenson, in 1879, observed at Zuñi that “the bottoms of old water jars and bowls form stands for the articles while being worked by the potter. The bowls are filled with sand when objects of a globular form are to be made” (1883, p. 329). At Pojuaque (a Tewa pueblo near San Ildefonso, now nearly extinct) he collected two “pottery moulds for bottoms of vessels” (loc. cit. p. 439). Mrs. Stevenson also noticed these olla bottoms at Zuñi (1904, p. 374).[19]Harrington writes: “Variously shaped section of gourd are used by women to smooth and shape pottery in the making” (1916, a, p. 102). Stevenson, in 1879, noted at Zuñi “a small trowel fashioned from a piece of gourd or fragment of pottery, the only tool employed in the manufacture of pottery” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson also speaks of these trowels (1904, p. 374).[20]Stevenson, in speaking of the making of pottery at Santa Clara, mentions “the process of polishing—with smooth, fine-grained stones”, (1883, p. 331). In his catalogue of stone objects collected at Zuñi in 1881, he differentiates between “small stones used in polishing pottery”, “small stones used in polishing unburned vessels”, and the “small polisher for glazing and smoothing pottery”, giving three different Indian names for the three kinds. He does not, however, explain the difference (1884, pp. 525, 526). He also catalogues “fifteen rubbing or smoothing stones for pottery” obtained at Walpi (1884, p. 587). Mrs. Stevenson remarked: “Polishing stones are used to finish the surface” of vessels at Zuñi (1904, p. 375).[21]Stevenson, in 1879 at Zuñi, noted that the paint was applied to pottery “with brushes made of the leaves of the yucca. These brushes are made of flat pieces of the leaf, which are stripped off and bruised at one end, and are of different sizes adapted to the coarse or fine lines the artist may wish to draw” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson wrote, again of Zuñi: “Yucca glaucaNutt. Soapweed.... The brushes employed for decorating pottery are made from the leaves of this plant, which, for this purpose, are cut the proper lengths and fringed at one end” (1915, p. 82).[22]Mrs. Stevenson says the Zuñis used a “rabbit skin mop” (1904, p. 375).[23]Mrs. Stevenson wrote of Zuñi: “The pieces to be fired are placed upon stones to raise them a few inches from the ground”, implying the absence of a grate (1904, p. 376).[24]I use the words “very skillfully” advisedly. Repeated attempts on my part to imitate the process resulted in rolls of exceedingly variable diameter. At Zuñi the roll is made by the apparently simpler and more efficient method of rolling the clay back and forth on a flat stone slab with one hand (seepl. 29, a).[25]Zuñi potters apply the roll to the outside instead of the inside of the growing vessel wall; otherwise the handling of the roll is exactly as at San Ildefonso (seepl. 29, b).[26]Throughout this report, the puki is spoken of as moving “clockwise” or “counterclockwise” and the sectors worked in are referred to the numerals on the face of the clock, as, “the six-to-eight-o’clock sector”. The point of view taken is that of the potter with “six o’clock” referring to that part of the bowl nearest her.[27]The “rim” of an unfinished vessel means the upper edge of the last roll added to it.[28]See, however, pl. 29. b; the Zuñi potter in this case has not obliterated the preceding rolls.[29]Stevenson, 1883, p. 331.[30]M. C. Stevenson, 1904, p. 375.[31]Binns, 1910, pp. 69-71.[32]The process is identical at Zuñi, seepl. 30, a.[33]From the earliest periods Southwestern pottery has been made in more or less the manner just described, that is, by the addition of successive rings of clay. During prehistoric times, however, there was developed a ware usually known as “corrugated”, in the building of which the roll was so lengthened as to become a spiral coil. The roll of paste forming the coil was very thin, averaging a little over one-quarter of an inch in diameter; and it was applied to the outside of the temporary rim, as at Zuñi (seepl. 29, b), instead of to the inside, as at San Ildefonso. Furthermore, the junctions between the coils were not obliterated on the exterior of the vessel, thus producing a ridged or corrugated effect. Corrugated pottery was principally used for cooking pots (see Holmes, 1886, p. 273).[34]One informant stated that these bowls, both with and without the terraces, were formerly, and are still, used to hold sacred meal.[35]The two-mouthed vase is rarely made at San Ildefonso. It is a type more commonly produced by the potters of Santa Clara.[36]Potsherds from pre-Spanish ruins show that handles have been applied to vessels in the ways described above for many centuries. The lug-type of handle, which is frequently found in ancient pottery, is no longer made at San Ildefonso. The probabilities are, however, that these lugs were welded to the exterior of the vessel, as in the first method described, rather than riveted on as in the second method.[37]The potter placed the responsibility for this crack upon a kitten which had jumped into the olla during the night. In the animal’s attempt to climb out, the vessel suffered some rather severe bumps. The story of the kitten’s adventure was told before the crack was noticed. Later it was used to explain the presence of the imperfection.[38]The expression “get warm” comes from the fact that while the vessel is damp the evaporating moisture causes it to feel cool; when thoroughly dry it feels warm.[39]The red slips are not used today in the designs, although some of the older vessels contain red elements which appear to have been made of the dark-red slip.[40]Stevenson says of the Zuñi: “This solution (of a fine white calcareous earth) is applied to the surface of the vessel and allowed to dry; it is then ready for the decorations” (1883, pp. 329, 330). Mrs. Stevenson, writing at a later date, gives more details: “A white clay is dissolved in water and then made into cones which are dried in the sun. When required for use these cones are rubbed to powder on a stone, again mixed with water, and applied in a liquid state to the object with a rabbit-skin mop. Polishing-stones are used to finish the surface” (1904, p. 375).[41]At Santa Clara and San Juan some polished ware is polished only from the rim to the shoulder and the lower half is apparently unslipped.[42]Stevenson in speaking of the polished black pottery of the Rio Grande pueblos says: “A solution of very fine ochre-colored clay is applied to the outside and inside near the top, or to such parts of the surface as are to be polished. While this solution thus applied is still moist, the process of polishing begins by rubbing the part thus washed with smooth, fine-grained stones until quite dry and glossy. The parts thus rubbed still retain the original red color of the clay. The vessels are again placed in the sun and allowed to become thoroughly dry, when they are ready for baking” (1883, p. 331). Mrs. Stevenson also gives an account somewhat similar: “In many of the pueblos the pottery is undecorated, the surface being finished in plain red or black. The ware is made of a yellowish clay, in the manner heretofore described, and the vessels are placed in the sun, where they remain for hours. They are then washed with a solution of red ochre, and while wet the process of polishing begins, the woman with untiring energy going over the surface again and again with her polishing-stone, every little while passing a wet cloth over the vessel to keep the surface moist. When the polishing is completed, the vessel is again placed in the sun for a short time before receiving its final baking in the oven” (1904, p. 375.)[43]This second potter, however, did use lard in polishing vessels to which the red slip had been applied.[44]The substitution of the chamois for a cloth was inaugurated by the potter using it.[45]The use of this paint for producing designs upon polished black ware was discovered by Maria Martinez in June, 1921. On inquiring why other potters did not copy the process, it was learned that because of certain taboo-like restrictions the secret of making this kind of ware would not be disclosed until a year after its discovery. Although the matter could not be further investigated because of the unwillingness of the Indians to discuss such things, it would appear that we have in this case a sort of primitive patent-right. At the present time (1925) practically all San Ildefonso potters make this ware, which has proved extraordinarily popular; Maria, however, still produces by far the finest pieces (seepl. 8, a).[46]Occasionally such precautions are disregarded, apparently through laziness. One potter did her painting in the same room in which some meat was being cooked. The combined odors of the cooking meat and the guaco attracted all the flies in the neighborhood, but fortunately screens kept some of them out of the room.[47]Stevenson gives no details of the painting at Zuñi; “When the pigment is properly reduced, and mixed with water so as to form a thin solution, it is applied with brushes made of the leaves of the yucca. These brushes are made of flat pieces of the leaf, which are stripped off and bruised at one end, and are of different sizes adapted to the coarse or fine lines the artist may wish to draw. In this manner all the decorations on the pottery are produced” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson is just as brief: “After a thorough drying of this foundation, the slip, the designs are painted with brushes made of yucca needles, the pigments having been ground in stone mortars and made into a paste with water to which a syrup of yucca fruit is added” (1904, p. 375). The stone mortar for pigment grinding may be seen in pl. 31, a.[48]On pp. 78 to 84 will be found notes on the actual painting of several typical designs.[49]One woman tried her best to teach me how to tell these shades apart, but it proved utterly impossible for me to distinguish the darker from the lighter.[50]This variant in polished black ware is a new departure. It was discovered, probably accidentally, by one of the San Ildefonso potters early in the summer of 1921. The process by which the red blotch is made has not as yet been brought completely under control.[51]It is interesting to note that in making the preliminary pencil draft, she uses entirely different strokes from those made by the brush.[52]The subject of symbolism is touched upon in this report only with the greatest diffidence. No two students of Southwestern ceramics seem to entertain the same theory, in all details, upon this subject. The statements made here are given for what they may be worth. The time devoted to the work did not permit of a careful and exhaustive study of the subject.[53]One potter, after glancing at a small vessel which was undoubtedly old, informed the writer that it had once belonged to the “summer people”, a social-religious division of the community.

FOOTNOTES:

[1]A brief history of Pecos, and a description of the work so far done at the site, are contained in “An Introduction to the Study of Southwestern Archaeology, with a Preliminary Account of the Excavations at Pecos”, by A. V. Kidder; No. 1 of the present series.

[2]Kidder, 1924.

[3]Kidder, M. A. and A. V., 1917, p. 330.

[4]A searching study of San Ildefonso decoration has been made by K. M. Chapman of Santa Fe. When this is published it will throw much light on the morphology of Pueblo design, and upon the relation of San Ildefonso symbolism to that of other Rio Grande pueblos.

[5]A vocabulary of the Tewa terms for clays, paints, and other ingredients; articles of paraphernalia; types of pottery; processes of pottery making, etc., was recorded by Dr. Guthe, and is available at Andover for consultation.

[6]See Harrington, 1916, Map 19, point 63. Under the nearby point (60; p. 314) he says: “Clay ... is obtained at this place; just where could not be learned.”

[7]Stevenson, to whom with Mrs. Stevenson we are indebted for practically our only comparative material, wrote in 1879 of Zuñi: “The clay mostly used by the Zuñians in the manufacture of pottery is a dark, bluish, carbonaceous clayey shale found in layers usually near the tops of the mesas” (1883, p. 329). Later, Mrs. Stevenson described at some length the ceremony of securing pottery clay (1904, p. 374). Among the San Ildefonso Indians of today there is no outward evidence of any such ceremony.

[8]At Zuñi the ingredients are ground and mixed, and the clay is kneaded on a stone slab. (See pl. 28, facing p. 76.)

[9]Stevenson said, in speaking of Zuñi pottery making: “This carbonaceous clay is first mixed with water and kneaded as a baker kneads dough until it reaches the proper consistency” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson describes the preparation of clay at Zuñi as follows: “The clay is ground to a powder and mixed with a small quantity of pulverized pottery, fragments of the latter being carefully hoarded for this purpose. The powder thus compounded is mixed with water enough to make a pasty mass, which is kneaded like dough. The more care taken in pulverizing the material and the more time spent in working it, the finer becomes the paste. When the mass reaches such a state of consistency that the fingers can no longer detect the presence of gritty particles, it is still more delicately tested with the tongue, and when found to be satisfactory it is placed in a vessel and covered with a cloth, where it will retain the moisture until wanted for use” (1904, p. 374-5).

[10]Stevenson (1883, p. 329) says: “With this (clay), crushed volcanic lava is sometimes mixed; but the Zuñians more frequently pulverize fragments of broken pottery, which have been preserved for this purpose. This seems to prevent explosion, cracking, or fracture by rendering the paste sufficiently porous to allow the heat to pass through without injurious effect.” And again: “The clays used by the Santa Clara Indians are of a brick-red color, containing an admixture of very fine sand, which, no doubt, prevents cracking in burning, and hence dispenses with the necessity of using lava or pottery fragments, as is the custom of the Indians of the western pueblos” (1883, p. 331). Binns, in “The Potter’s Craft”, describing the preparation of clay, says, “If the clay prove very sandy it must be washed, ... but all the sand should not be removed. Clay with no sand in it will be apt to crack in drying and burning. Clay with too much sand will be short and brittle in working. If the clay is very smooth and shows no sand, a little fine builder’s sand may be added with advantage, a definite proportion being used and recorded” (1910, p. 40).

[11]Stevenson, in his catalogue of Zuñi collections, enumerated “Tierra amarilla, or yellow micaceous clay, of which the Rio Grande Indians make many varieties of vessels” (1883, p. 368).

[12]Harrington, in speaking of a clay-pit near the village of Las Truchas, writes: “It is said that at this place the best red pottery clay known to the Tewa is obtained. It is pebbly, but makes very strong dishes, and it is used especially for ollas. It is said that Tewa of various pueblos visit this place frequently and carry away the clay. The clay deposit is a mile or two southeast of Truchas town” (1916, p. 340). This may be the claypit referred to by the informant, although the clay, while pebbly, is by no means red.

[13]Stevenson, writing of the Zuñi, said of their white slip: “A paint or solution is then made, either of a fine white calcareous earth, consisting mainly of carbonate of lime, or of a milk-white indurated clay, almost wholly insoluble in acids, and apparently derived from decomposed feldspar with a small proportion of mica” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson, in a later publication, said: “A white clay is dissolved in water and then made into cones which are dried in the sun. When required for use these cones are rubbed to powder on a stone, again mixed with water, and applied in a liquid state to the object” (1904, p. 375).

[14]Harrington mentions this bed as “a deposit of bright red paint situated about two miles east of Santa Fe, the informants think north of Santa Fe Creek, in high land a few hundred yards from that creek. This paint was used for body painting. It is said that Jicarilla Apache still go to the deposit to get this paint and sometimes sell it to the Tewa” (1916, p. 354). Stevenson is speaking of the black ware of Santa Clara and other Rio Grande pueblos, mentions “a solution of very fine ochre-colored clay” (1883, p. 331), which was probably this same substance. Mrs. Stevenson also mentions “red ochre” (1904, p. 375).

[15]Stevenson, writing of the Zuñis in 1881, said: “The material used to produce the red or brown colors is a yellowish impure clay, colored from oxide of iron; indeed it is mainly clay, but contains some sand and a very small amount of carbonate of lime”; it “is generally found in a hard, stony condition, and is ground in a small stone mortar ... and mixed with water so as to form a thin solution” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson added later: “Ferruginous clays which on heating burn to yellow, red, or brown are employed for decorating” (1904, p. 375).

[16]Peritoma serrulatum(Pursh); synonyms:Cleome serrulata, andCleome integrifolia; (Wooton and Standley, 1915, p. 290). Stevenson wrote: “It is said that among the Cochiti, Santa Clara, and some other pueblos a vegetable matter is employed to produce some of their decorative designs; this, however, I was unable to verify, though some of the Indians assured me of the fact, and furnished me a bunch of the plant, which Dr. Vasey, of the Agricultural Department, found to beCleome integrifolia, a plant common throughout the Western Territories” (1883, p. 331). Again, “That of the decorated class is ornamented with the juice ofCleome integrifolia, which is fixed to the ware in the process of burning” (loc. cit., p. 430). Harrington writes: “This is a very important plant to the Tewa, inasmuch as black paint for pottery decoration is made from it. Large quantities of young plants are collected, usually in July. The plants are boiled well in water; the woody parts are then removed and the decoction is again allowed to boil until it becomes thick and attains a black color. This thick fluid is poured on a board to dry and soon becomes hardened. It may be kept in hard cakes for an indefinite period. When needed these are soaked in hot water until of the consistency needed for paint. Guaco is also used as a food. The hardened cakes are soaked in hot water, and then fried in grease. The finely ground plants are mixed with water and the liquid is drunk as a remedy for stomach disorders; or sometimes fresh plants wrapped in a cloth are applied to the abdomen” (1916, a, pp. 58, 59). (It should be noted that the accounts obtained by the writer from the informants of San Ildefonso do not agree in detail with the one given by Harrington.) Mrs. Stevenson wrote of Zuñi: “Water from boiledCleome serrulata(Mexican name waco) is mixed with black pigment (a manganiferous clay containing organic matter) in decorating pottery” (1904, p. 375); and in more detail: “The entire plant, minus the root, is boiled for a considerable time, and the water in which it is cooked is allowed to evaporate. The firm paste secured from precipitation is used in conjunction with a black mineral paint for decorating pottery” (1915, p. 92).

[17]Stevenson, in 1879, saw the Rio Grande Pueblo potters use “coarsely broken dried manure obtained from the corrals”, and added that for the polished black ware “another application of fuel, finely pulverized, is made” (1883, p. 331).

[18]Stevenson, in 1879, observed at Zuñi that “the bottoms of old water jars and bowls form stands for the articles while being worked by the potter. The bowls are filled with sand when objects of a globular form are to be made” (1883, p. 329). At Pojuaque (a Tewa pueblo near San Ildefonso, now nearly extinct) he collected two “pottery moulds for bottoms of vessels” (loc. cit. p. 439). Mrs. Stevenson also noticed these olla bottoms at Zuñi (1904, p. 374).

[19]Harrington writes: “Variously shaped section of gourd are used by women to smooth and shape pottery in the making” (1916, a, p. 102). Stevenson, in 1879, noted at Zuñi “a small trowel fashioned from a piece of gourd or fragment of pottery, the only tool employed in the manufacture of pottery” (1883, p. 329). Mrs. Stevenson also speaks of these trowels (1904, p. 374).

[20]Stevenson, in speaking of the making of pottery at Santa Clara, mentions “the process of polishing—with smooth, fine-grained stones”, (1883, p. 331). In his catalogue of stone objects collected at Zuñi in 1881, he differentiates between “small stones used in polishing pottery”, “small stones used in polishing unburned vessels”, and the “small polisher for glazing and smoothing pottery”, giving three different Indian names for the three kinds. He does not, however, explain the difference (1884, pp. 525, 526). He also catalogues “fifteen rubbing or smoothing stones for pottery” obtained at Walpi (1884, p. 587). Mrs. Stevenson remarked: “Polishing stones are used to finish the surface” of vessels at Zuñi (1904, p. 375).

[21]Stevenson, in 1879 at Zuñi, noted that the paint was applied to pottery “with brushes made of the leaves of the yucca. These brushes are made of flat pieces of the leaf, which are stripped off and bruised at one end, and are of different sizes adapted to the coarse or fine lines the artist may wish to draw” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson wrote, again of Zuñi: “Yucca glaucaNutt. Soapweed.... The brushes employed for decorating pottery are made from the leaves of this plant, which, for this purpose, are cut the proper lengths and fringed at one end” (1915, p. 82).

[22]Mrs. Stevenson says the Zuñis used a “rabbit skin mop” (1904, p. 375).

[23]Mrs. Stevenson wrote of Zuñi: “The pieces to be fired are placed upon stones to raise them a few inches from the ground”, implying the absence of a grate (1904, p. 376).

[24]I use the words “very skillfully” advisedly. Repeated attempts on my part to imitate the process resulted in rolls of exceedingly variable diameter. At Zuñi the roll is made by the apparently simpler and more efficient method of rolling the clay back and forth on a flat stone slab with one hand (seepl. 29, a).

[25]Zuñi potters apply the roll to the outside instead of the inside of the growing vessel wall; otherwise the handling of the roll is exactly as at San Ildefonso (seepl. 29, b).

[26]Throughout this report, the puki is spoken of as moving “clockwise” or “counterclockwise” and the sectors worked in are referred to the numerals on the face of the clock, as, “the six-to-eight-o’clock sector”. The point of view taken is that of the potter with “six o’clock” referring to that part of the bowl nearest her.

[27]The “rim” of an unfinished vessel means the upper edge of the last roll added to it.

[28]See, however, pl. 29. b; the Zuñi potter in this case has not obliterated the preceding rolls.

[29]Stevenson, 1883, p. 331.

[30]M. C. Stevenson, 1904, p. 375.

[31]Binns, 1910, pp. 69-71.

[32]The process is identical at Zuñi, seepl. 30, a.

[33]From the earliest periods Southwestern pottery has been made in more or less the manner just described, that is, by the addition of successive rings of clay. During prehistoric times, however, there was developed a ware usually known as “corrugated”, in the building of which the roll was so lengthened as to become a spiral coil. The roll of paste forming the coil was very thin, averaging a little over one-quarter of an inch in diameter; and it was applied to the outside of the temporary rim, as at Zuñi (seepl. 29, b), instead of to the inside, as at San Ildefonso. Furthermore, the junctions between the coils were not obliterated on the exterior of the vessel, thus producing a ridged or corrugated effect. Corrugated pottery was principally used for cooking pots (see Holmes, 1886, p. 273).

[34]One informant stated that these bowls, both with and without the terraces, were formerly, and are still, used to hold sacred meal.

[35]The two-mouthed vase is rarely made at San Ildefonso. It is a type more commonly produced by the potters of Santa Clara.

[36]Potsherds from pre-Spanish ruins show that handles have been applied to vessels in the ways described above for many centuries. The lug-type of handle, which is frequently found in ancient pottery, is no longer made at San Ildefonso. The probabilities are, however, that these lugs were welded to the exterior of the vessel, as in the first method described, rather than riveted on as in the second method.

[37]The potter placed the responsibility for this crack upon a kitten which had jumped into the olla during the night. In the animal’s attempt to climb out, the vessel suffered some rather severe bumps. The story of the kitten’s adventure was told before the crack was noticed. Later it was used to explain the presence of the imperfection.

[38]The expression “get warm” comes from the fact that while the vessel is damp the evaporating moisture causes it to feel cool; when thoroughly dry it feels warm.

[39]The red slips are not used today in the designs, although some of the older vessels contain red elements which appear to have been made of the dark-red slip.

[40]Stevenson says of the Zuñi: “This solution (of a fine white calcareous earth) is applied to the surface of the vessel and allowed to dry; it is then ready for the decorations” (1883, pp. 329, 330). Mrs. Stevenson, writing at a later date, gives more details: “A white clay is dissolved in water and then made into cones which are dried in the sun. When required for use these cones are rubbed to powder on a stone, again mixed with water, and applied in a liquid state to the object with a rabbit-skin mop. Polishing-stones are used to finish the surface” (1904, p. 375).

[41]At Santa Clara and San Juan some polished ware is polished only from the rim to the shoulder and the lower half is apparently unslipped.

[42]Stevenson in speaking of the polished black pottery of the Rio Grande pueblos says: “A solution of very fine ochre-colored clay is applied to the outside and inside near the top, or to such parts of the surface as are to be polished. While this solution thus applied is still moist, the process of polishing begins by rubbing the part thus washed with smooth, fine-grained stones until quite dry and glossy. The parts thus rubbed still retain the original red color of the clay. The vessels are again placed in the sun and allowed to become thoroughly dry, when they are ready for baking” (1883, p. 331). Mrs. Stevenson also gives an account somewhat similar: “In many of the pueblos the pottery is undecorated, the surface being finished in plain red or black. The ware is made of a yellowish clay, in the manner heretofore described, and the vessels are placed in the sun, where they remain for hours. They are then washed with a solution of red ochre, and while wet the process of polishing begins, the woman with untiring energy going over the surface again and again with her polishing-stone, every little while passing a wet cloth over the vessel to keep the surface moist. When the polishing is completed, the vessel is again placed in the sun for a short time before receiving its final baking in the oven” (1904, p. 375.)

[43]This second potter, however, did use lard in polishing vessels to which the red slip had been applied.

[44]The substitution of the chamois for a cloth was inaugurated by the potter using it.

[45]The use of this paint for producing designs upon polished black ware was discovered by Maria Martinez in June, 1921. On inquiring why other potters did not copy the process, it was learned that because of certain taboo-like restrictions the secret of making this kind of ware would not be disclosed until a year after its discovery. Although the matter could not be further investigated because of the unwillingness of the Indians to discuss such things, it would appear that we have in this case a sort of primitive patent-right. At the present time (1925) practically all San Ildefonso potters make this ware, which has proved extraordinarily popular; Maria, however, still produces by far the finest pieces (seepl. 8, a).

[46]Occasionally such precautions are disregarded, apparently through laziness. One potter did her painting in the same room in which some meat was being cooked. The combined odors of the cooking meat and the guaco attracted all the flies in the neighborhood, but fortunately screens kept some of them out of the room.

[47]Stevenson gives no details of the painting at Zuñi; “When the pigment is properly reduced, and mixed with water so as to form a thin solution, it is applied with brushes made of the leaves of the yucca. These brushes are made of flat pieces of the leaf, which are stripped off and bruised at one end, and are of different sizes adapted to the coarse or fine lines the artist may wish to draw. In this manner all the decorations on the pottery are produced” (1883, p. 330). Mrs. Stevenson is just as brief: “After a thorough drying of this foundation, the slip, the designs are painted with brushes made of yucca needles, the pigments having been ground in stone mortars and made into a paste with water to which a syrup of yucca fruit is added” (1904, p. 375). The stone mortar for pigment grinding may be seen in pl. 31, a.

[48]On pp. 78 to 84 will be found notes on the actual painting of several typical designs.

[49]One woman tried her best to teach me how to tell these shades apart, but it proved utterly impossible for me to distinguish the darker from the lighter.

[50]This variant in polished black ware is a new departure. It was discovered, probably accidentally, by one of the San Ildefonso potters early in the summer of 1921. The process by which the red blotch is made has not as yet been brought completely under control.

[51]It is interesting to note that in making the preliminary pencil draft, she uses entirely different strokes from those made by the brush.

[52]The subject of symbolism is touched upon in this report only with the greatest diffidence. No two students of Southwestern ceramics seem to entertain the same theory, in all details, upon this subject. The statements made here are given for what they may be worth. The time devoted to the work did not permit of a careful and exhaustive study of the subject.

[53]One potter, after glancing at a small vessel which was undoubtedly old, informed the writer that it had once belonged to the “summer people”, a social-religious division of the community.

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