Historic Zia Pueblo OLLA with Extraordinary Designs

A Rare Vision of the 1920s: The Zia Orange-Tan Water Jar

In the early 1920s, Zia potters embarked on a brief but brilliant experimental period, introducing a distinctive orange-tan slip. This jar is a premier example of that era, capturing a moment of transition before Zia pottery shifted toward the more standardized styles of the 1930s.

Technical Hallmarks include a surface finished in a warm orange-tan, providing a vibrant canvas for the black and red mineral pigments; inclusion of red banding at the top of the underbody — a classic diagnostic feature that was essentially abandoned by 1930, which firmly dates the piece to the 1920s, the "golden decade" for this specific slip color; and, lastly, its monumental scale achieved by eliminating a separate neck design and using the full body of the jar as a single field. In doing this, the artist achieved a "monumental" aesthetic. The design is bold and expansive without feeling crowded.

The jar's decoration is an achievement in cross-pueblo influence: the primary design is a bold, black-outlined red stepped element known colloquially as the "Eiffel Tower" design, which originated at neighboring Santa Ana Pueblo. Its presence here is a beautiful reminder of the deep ancestral ties between the two villages.

Attached to the steps are three-feathered "cloud" designs and triangular black elements. Interspersed between these heavy geometric forms are black birds in flight — a motif that emerged in the 1920s and would later define the Zia style of the mid-century.

A Legacy of Survival: The History of the Clay

The story of Zia pottery is, quite literally, the story of the Pueblo's survival. Until the 1700s, Zia and Santa Ana were adjacent neighbors. When Santa Ana moved to find more fertile farming land, the two remained spiritually and artistically connected, leading to the shared "Eiffel Tower" design seen here.

Because Zia's own volcanic soil was poor for crops, the women of the Pueblo turned to their clay. They traded these magnificent vessels to Jemez Pueblo for food, effectively sustaining their community through the bleakest years of the early 1900s. To hold this jar is to hold a piece of the resilience that kept Zia Pueblo alive.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Historic Zia Pueblo OLLA with Extraordinary Designs is from a client from California

References:

- The Pottery of Zia Pueblo by Harlow and Lanmon, Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe

- The Pottery of Santa Ana Pueblo by Francis H. Harlow, et. al., Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe

TAGS: Southwest Indian Pottery, Zia Pueblo, Historic Pottery, Santa Ana Pueblo, Jemez Pueblo