TOHONO O'ODHAM BLACK ON RED JAR circa 1900
Because of the fire-clouded side, the 1900 date is conservative. O'odham and Maricopa potters started worrying about fire clouds early, and they largely disappeared from anything intended for tourists, who didn't like them. This could be Maricopa, and, in fact before we started looking at southern Arizona pottery nuances, we thought it was Maricopa, to the point where we put it on page 11 of our 1998 Collections of Southwestern Pottery labeled as Maricopa. the high polish speaks for Maricopa, but to us, the design says Tohono in a much louder voice. For the moment, despite our earlier published opinion, we'll stick with Tohono. Whoever made it, it's an early piece.
3-3/4" diameter x 6" high
Condition excellent considering its age, small repair on rim
H-392 $225

