Polychrome Pictorial Small Jar [R]

Elizabeth Medina, whose maiden name was Elizabeth Toya, was born and raised at Jemez Pueblo. After marrying Marcellus Medina of Zia Pueblo, she moved to her husband’s pueblo and abandoned her previous style of Jemez pottery for the style of her new residence. Her mother-in-law, Sofia Medina, is credited with teaching her the proper processes of making Zia pottery.

Medina has designed her pottery in traditional Zia form but also has deviated many times to produce something out of the ordinary, such as this jar with several unusual pictorial design elements. There is a striped clown, an Avanyu (water serpent), and an eagle, each item repeated twice. I have been told that the tribe has now forbidden portrayals such as on this jar, and that Medina is no longer permitted to make such. This has not been confirmed.

Pictorial elements on Zia jars are not a recent development. A Zia jar in the Museum of New Mexico, over 75 years old, features a pictorial element of the Zia Sun symbol. The state of New Mexico borrowed this symbol and it now is the official New Mexico State flag design. Many businesses and organizations in the state use the Zia Sun symbol as its logo.

This jar is a decade or so old but is in original excellent condition. The artist name appears just below the framing lines near the foot of one of the clown figures. Biographical information on Medina and information and pictures of some of her pottery appear in the referenced book below.