Santa Clara Small Rectangular Pottery Lidded Box [SOLD]

This marvelous Black-on-black lidded box was created by one of the most talented potters of Santa Clara Pueblo. She excelled at making unique and usual items. I commissioned her in the 1980s to make several unique items: a Noah's Arc, a Navajo buckboard wagon, a 3-piece train set, and a circus animal parade wagon. She excelled at each but would not make copies, saying she enjoyed the challenge of making something different but would not go into production.

This small pottery box may be the only one of this style she ever made. It is decorated with matte designs on all four sides and designs on the lid. 

Maria I. Naranjo (1919-2006) was a potter from Santa Clara Pueblo. She is believed to be the first Santa Clara potter to make nacimientos, or nativity scenes. She was the daughter of  Avristo Naranjo and Amelia Tafoya, sister of Isabel Naranjo, and mother of Martha Mirabal.

Condition: very good condition with minimal abrasion.

Provenance: this Santa Clara Small Rectangular Pottery Lidded Box is from the collection of a Santa Fe resident

Recommended Reading: Collections of Southwestern Pottery: Candlesticks to Canteens, Frogs to Figurines by Allan Hayes, et al.

TAGS: Southwest Indian Pottery, Santa Clara Pueblo, Pottery Figurines, Maria I. Naranjo