JEMEZ CLAY POTTERY

JEMEZ CLAY POTTERY

Jemez clay pottery is a product of the Towa or Jemez Native American Indian tribes. The making of clay pottery is one of the oldest crafts known to man. Many of the ancient clay pots have been put in museums for display of this most ancient art form. Clay pots have been used for centuries. The pottery was used for carrying water, storing food and gathering seeds for next years planting of crops. This age old craft has been handed down from one generation to the next. The Jemez clay pottery is a very distinctive pottery that has many traits that identify it as one that belongs to the Jemez Indians.

The Jemez Indians lived in a region called the Northern Four Corners. The Jemez tribes lived mostly in the mountains of the San Juan River basin. They lived up in the mountains or on the plateau of the high cliffs. The Towa natives were sometimes called the cliff dwellers. The building of their homes high among the mountains and cliffs helped to keep them safe from other tribes or the Spanish that has settled into this area. One of the early traits of the Jemez clay pottery is the black on white of Rosa clay pots. The clay pottery is white or a dull gray with black lines or markings that has a design used by the Towa natives. The pottery is painted with a vegetal paint that was made by a mineral pigment common to that region. As the Towa natives moved southward through the mountains they took their pottery with them. As a result of their movement the clay that they used to make theirs pottery changed also. The clay pottery was then called black on red. The Towa tribes came to settle in the Jemez Mountains that has clay that is a reddish-brown in color and very rich looking. In the early to the middle of the 18th century the Jemez Indians came into conflict with the Spanish who had moved into their territory and fighting broke out among them. The Towa natives destroyed the Jemez clay pottery so that the Spanish could not have possession of their valued heritage. As a direct result of the shattering of the pottery the making of Jemez clay pottery was a lost craft for many centuries.

The making of the Jemez clay pottery is a very long and tedious task. Once the clay is gather from the right source it is then soaked for the cleaning and removal of stones and twigs. The clay is then dried in the sun and ground into a fine powder to be mixed with sand if needed. The clay is then tempered and stored in tightly sealed containers to be used later. One of the methods that the Jemez clay pottery is made by is the coil method. The potter takes the clay and rolls rope coils with the clay and starts to form his shape for his unique piece of pottery. Once the shape is achieved he then begins to hand smooth the clay to its rich luster. The slab technique is much the same as the coil method but slabs of clay are used instead of coils. Once the perfection of the pottery is attained it is then dried to a hard leathery condition. It is sanded, decorated or carved with the many different designs use for Jemez clay pottery. Some of the images that are put on the pottery are images of corn which mean life, health or happiness. Eagle feathers may also be carved or painted on a clay pot that can symbolize power. The Jemez pots can have a series of lines that look like stair steps. Perhaps this is from the times of living in the mountains and using stairs as a way to get into their homes. A clay slip is placed upon the pot and while the slip is still wet it is burnished using a round stone. The art work is then painted with the natural paint of choice. The last of the process is to fire the piece of art work in a kiln. The modern day potter has two options. He can use an electric kiln or a much older method that is still used today which is the open kiln method. The firing of a piece of pottery is what oxidizes the pot so that it will become hard. This is a very skilled process to achieve the right hardness and color that the potter is hoping to acquire. The many hours of crafting this beautiful piece of art work is what makes the Jemez clay pottery a tradition that has come down through history.

The Jemez clay pottery is an art from the past. It has survived many centuries of hardship and was almost lost forever. The Jemez American Indians have preserved this rich cultural heritage to bring the people of today the clay pots of centuries ago. The Jemez clay pottery is crafted to be as unique as the potter who is sculpting his clay pot. Time will never be able to undo what the ancient Towa natives have crafted into their pottery.