2026-03 Jar with avian and eagle-tail designs

Eagle Tail Design

Many of the design elements on this jar are common on pots from Hopi, but the firing, the exquisite detail of painting and the contradictions within the design are extraordinary.  That quality is typical of Karen Abeita’s work. Form: The walls of the jar, including...

2026-01: Double-lobed canteen

Canteens, Eagle Tail Design

Large lobe: 5.0” h X 3.875 “ w Small lobe: 4.0625” h X 3.375” w Bi-lobed canteens are a tradition at Acoma Pueblo, just west of Santa Fe, and are less-frequently made at a number of the Rio Grande pueblos.  This form is not native to Hopi and is rarely made there....

2025-13 Nampeyo playing with a Polacca pot

1880s to 1900 Transition Ware, Eagle Tail Design, Polacca Ware, White-slipped, Nampeyo

The neck is about 1.0-inch high. This rather worn and crudely-painted pot turns out to be a gold mine of information, but learning its story requires an extended investigation and discussion.  As a result of these discussions I can say with high confidence that jar...

2022-13 Modern Sikyatki eagle tail jar

Eagle Tail Design

This large seedpot is both art and experiment.  Its design is a particularly elaborate rendition of an ancient design revitalized by Nampeyo in the late 19th century, inherited by generations of her family, and adopted by other potters at Hopi.  The pot was fired...

2022-09 “M. TAH-VO” jar with eagle-tail variation

Eagle Tail Design

This jar is a miniature masterwork: elegant of form and carrying a creative rendition of a classic design.  It’s also a bit of a mystery since the signature —taken literally— is unknown.  Yet even if it had not been signed, the gentle blushing and the quality...

2019-05 Polacca jar with eagle-tail design

1880s to 1900 Transition Ware, Eagle Tail Design, Polacca Ware

The iconic Nampeyo pot is a Sikyatki Revival low-shouldered jar with her eagle-tail design. This collection contains such a pot (2005-16) dating from about 1905. So identified is this design with Nampeyo that the pot is recognizable as “by Nampeyo” from...