Wedding Vessel with Melon Ridges and Pedestal [SOLD]

C4078U-wedding.jpg

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Artist Unknown

Wedding vase with a pedestal.

Part of the excitement of acquiring a piece of historic pottery is trying to determine if is feasible to make an attribution to a particular potter.  In the case of this wedding vessel, it is certainly attributable to a member of the Tafoya family—Tomacita Tafoya Naranjo (1884-1918), Sara Fina Tafoya (1863-1950), or Margaret Tafoya (1904-2001).

Tomasita was Margaret’s older sister and Margaret often visited her on her way home from school and would watch her make pottery.  According to Charles King “Her death in 1918 precluded her inclusion in the renewed interest in Santa Clara pottery of the 1920s. However, she was already known for her unique and distinctive forms.  Her pottery had the thin walls of her mother’s work and often included distinctive ‘melon ribs’ on the shoulders.”

One of the most famous nineteenth-century Santa Clara Pueblo potters was Sara Fina Tafoya.  It is quite likely that she is the one who first made a wedding vessel like this one and that she taught her daughter Tomasita how to do it.  Potters traditionally learned from and copied the style of their mothers. This wedding vase easily falls into the period when Sara Fina would have made such.

Another wedding vase, almost identical to this one—with a pedestal, melon ribs, and a firing that resulted in a mixture of red and black—is published in Charles King’s book on page 47 that Margaret identified as one she made in the early 1920s.  The lips on the spouts differ in the published one and the one featured here, an indication that perhaps this one is older than the one identified by Margaret. If that is so, then perhaps this one was made by Margaret’s mother or sister even earlier than 1920.

It is quite acceptable to say that the wedding vase was made by one of the three Tafoya women but trying to be specific as to which one made it is less acceptable.  It is an excellent example of early twentieth century Santa Clara pottery by a potter of the Tafoya family. Keeping a little mystery associated with the wedding vase adds interest and intrigue and keeps one always searching for more answers.


Condition: this Wedding Vessel with Melon Ridges and Pedestal is in good condition with minor fracture cracks that do not affect stability

Provenance: from the Southwest Indian Pottery collection of a family from Colorado

Reference: King, Charles.  Born of Fire - The Life and Pottery of Margaret Tafoya, 2008


Artist Unknown
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