POTTERY THROUGHTHE AGES: TRADITIONS IN CLAY · expression, anthropologists and ·art historians can employ stylisticandiconographicanalysistomakesoundinferences ... lasting through

POTTERY THROUGH THE AGES:TRADITIONS IN CLAY

Ceramics and the ResearcherCeramics was one of the most complex inventions of

prehistoric man and has proven to be a useful key available.to the Archaeologist, Antl)ropologist and Art Historian forunlocking the mysteries ofancient cultures. The process of itsmanufacture, techniques of its decoration, methods of itsfiring and determination of its use can reveal a text ofinformation concerning the culture which produced andused it. Once clay is worked and fired it becomes a perma­nent record of the human event. The physical context inwhich it is discovered, whether it is scattered on a room floor,found ina trash mound or retrieved from a ceremonial cache,can be relevant to its cultural use.

When considering ceramics as an artifact, archaeologistshave a number ofscientific methods available to them for theassessment of pertinent cultural information. Even thesmall­est sherd surviving in context can reveal important data suchas a possible clay bed source and the relative dating at thetime of firing. When considering ceramics as an artisticexpression, anthropologists and ·art historians can employstylistic and iconographic analysis to make sound inferencesconcerning aspects ofsocial, political or religious institutionsof culture.

Aware of the importance of ceramics, archaeologists havedevised systems to describe and classify ceramics by wareand type. This system, which identifies changes and innova­tions in ceramicproduction within a culture, is invaluable forestablishing chronological sequences. It is particularly im­portant in situations where alternative methods of dating,such as tree ring and carbon 14, are not applicable. With thissystem, intrusive pottery types, which suggest cultural ex­change, are easily recognizable in an archaeological context.By using this same typology, studies of ceramic forms, pat­tern decorations and inconographic motifs have contributedto a better understanding of the diffusion of ideas and themechanics of cultural diversification.

The first evidence of ceramic manufacture within thecontinental United States appears in the northeastern regionat the end of the Archaic Period and transition to EarlyWoodland Period between 2000 B.C. and 1500 B.C. Prior to

the advent of ceramics, basketry, wooden or skin containerswere sufficient to meet the needs of the nomadic Archaichunter and gatherer. The process involved in forming pot­tery as well as its fragility suggest a more sedentary life style,one in which the members could easily exploit an abundantwild food source and store the surplus, making continuoustravel unnecessary.

Although the appearance ofceramics seemingly precededthe incorporation of domestic plants into a subsistence strat­egy, the development and proliferation of ceramic technol­ogy is inextricably linked to groups that increasingly reliedon agriculture for their dietary needs. Not all native culturesin North America developed ceramics. The Inuit and Ath­abascan of the Arctic and Sub-Arctic, the nativegroups alongthe North Pacific Coast and those of Coastal California, andmany of the cultures of the Great Basin and Plains lacktraditions ofceramic production, and never relied heavily onfarming. Three prehistoric regions that witnessed the devel­opment of socially complex agrarian societies were locatedeast of the Mbsissippi in the north and south and in theSouthwestern area that includes the Four Corners states.Within these three broad regions, several distinctive culturesdeveloped whose identity and evolution have been deter­mined in part by the study of their ceramic production.

In response to improved agriculture, groups adoptedmore sedentary lives and populations increased. Social,economic, political and religious institutions became morecomplex. The development of different ceramic wares andtypes appears to be linked to the diversification of society.Plain and utilitarian wares first replaced some of the func­tions of fiber and skin containers. Painted wares that oftenhave several sub-categories of decorative types, may havehad utilitarian functions but also seem to have served spe­cialized needs that were associated with cultural identity, orindividual status and rank. Ceranucs were also used to formesoteric objects such as figurines, pipes, jewelry and musicalinstruments that reflect the existence of different social insti­tutions. Certain archaeological contexts and some ethnohis­toric accounts link the use of ceramics to religious ceremo­nies and rites of passage. Throughout the different cultural

phases in these varied societies and up until frequent andprolonged contact with Europeans during the eighteenthand nineteenth centuries, ceramics in their myriad formsplayed a central role in many aspects of native life.

During this century and within the past few decades,many contemporary native groups have a revived interest inceramic arts. Drawing upon a rich heritage and, in somecases, archaeological information, talented individuals haverediscovered the artistry of the medium. The resurgence ofnative ceramics as a craft-art is confirmed by the attendanceat Native American arts and craft fairs throughout thiscountry and by the several works by prominent artistsacquired for collections of major art museums. The demandfor these works has become a viable source of revenue forwhole communities, as well as an object of pride and culturalaffirmation.

This exhibit features works by three major artists: PeterJones of Seneca Iroquois, who has revived a traditionalceramic form as well as explored innovations; Anna Mitchellof Cherokee descent who has studied the ceramic traditionsof the "Five Civilized Tribes" of the Southeast; and PhyllisCerna of Maricopa lineage who follows a Southwesterntradition of several generations in the forming of her Black­on-red pottery. PotteryThrough the Ages: Traditions in Claypresents a survey ofceramic traditions from prehistory to thepresent in geographic regions relevant to the,three featuredartists. In so doing, it is hoped that the .ttaditions andinnovations of these artists' craft will be better understoodand appreciated.

The Woodland Culture, North and South

The term Early Woodland Period (ca. 1000 to 300 B.C.) isapplied to peoples nearly everywhere east of the MississippiRiver and is distinguished from the Late Archaic Periodprimarily by the appearance of rough, grit and sand tem­pered ceramics of simple forms. The florescence of Wood­land traits is best known from the Adena-Hopewell tradi­tions that developed in the lush river valleys of Ohio andKentucky beginning in the Late Period (ca. 800 B.C.) andlasting through the Middle Period (ca. AD. 800). It spreadthroughout the Woodland territory as far north as NewBrunswick and as far south as Florida.

Characteristic of this time period were large populationcenters that formed massive ceremonial earth works includ­ing conical burial mounds that encased log-lined tombs andaccretion mounds that often took. the form of stylized birds,bears and other animals. The most renown of these earthsculptures is GreatSerpentMound,AdamsCounty, Ohio. Itsundulating form extends 1,254 feet from a spiraling tail to astylized head that appears to be clutchingan egg in its mouth.

Many of these earth works were laden with rich caches ofexotic goods such as jewelry of shell and fresh water pearls,panther and bear teeth and claws, an abundance of workedsheets of mica and copper, flint knives and arrow points,

deer antlers that were often wrapped in copper, and ceram­ics in the form of human figurines and decorative and fineplain pottery. It has been determined that materials for thesecaches were obtained from areas as far away as the RockyMountains, the Gult' and Atlantic Coasts, the Great Lakesand the southern Appalachian Mountains. To maintain sucha far reaching trade network may have required a rankedand stable social structure with a specialized labor force.

The term Hopewell no longer refers to a culturebut to a setof cultural traits which identify a Middle Woodland sphereof influence between ca. 100 B.C. and AD. 600+. Specifictypes of materials are consistently recovered from prehis­toric sites and a distinct set of motifs, symbols, and array ofeffigy forms are also found throughout the region. Thisiconography features primarily avian forms, both riparianand predatory with an emphasis on claws and beaks, fish,human hands, eyes with flared or bifurcated motifs, concen­tric circles and spirals. All of these designs are extant in theceramics from this period.

The gray and buff, grit (sand and crushed rock) temperedceramics of the Northern Hopewell were typically ovoid orconoidal in form with slightly restricted necks and texturedrims that sometimes formed thick, over-hanging collars.Distinctive decorative types feature a fine balance betweensmooth burnished areas and rough textured areas. Thiscreates a contrast between figure and ground or positive andnegative designs. The decorations are generally curvilinear,including many of the animals that appear as highly ab­stracted, undulating series of lines that suggest beaks, wings,tails and claws.

A distinctive ceremonial type ofceramic developed in theSoutheastern Hopewell known as the Weeden Island Tradi­tion (ca. AD. 300 to 1200). This shell tempered ceramic typeis distinguished by perforations or cut-outs of the vesselform that accentuate the structure of the pot or effigy. True toHopewell tradition, figure and ground relationships are

accentuated by the useof texturing, polychromepaintor per­forations. Avian forms, particularly owls, dominate the ef­figy category. Except for the possible use as incense or to­bacco burners, the perforations belie the ordinary function ofa vessel-container and suggests the intriguing notion thatthis was a truly ceremonial type of ceramic sculpture. Al­though the occurrence of Weeden Island ceramics are con­centrated in Florida and Georgia, examples have been foundthroughout the southern states.

It has never been demonstrated that agriculture played amajor role in the subsistence needs of the northeasterncultures during the Woodland Periods. Evidence exists forthe cultivation of squash, gourds, sunflowers and a few do­mestic grains. However, dietary staples appear to have re­mained typical of a hunter and gatherer society. In contrast,the southeastern peoples enjoyed a prolonged growing sea­son, and increasingly relied on the farming ofcom, beans andsquash to support populations. The cultural changes thatoccurred during the Mississippian Period (ca. 1000 to 1600+)has been linked to the development or introduction of alarger and hardier variety of com. Thus the northern sectorof the Woodland tradition was less affected by the innova­tions of the Mississippian Period.

Throughout the Mississippi River drainage and southernstates large sites like Cahokia in Illinois, Spiro in Oklahoma,Moundville inAlabama and Etowah in Georgia becameseatsofpowerful chiefdoms that held sway over large geographicareas. Attributes of Mississippian Period are very similar tothoseof the preceding Hopewell-Woodland. Theconical andaccretion mounds were replaced by large truncated, earthenpyramids or platform mounds that supported wooden edi­fices. These large planned ceremonial and urban centersoften had at least one section enclosed by a log palisade.

Materials found in Mississippian caches are similar to theformer period. However, instead of worked copper, mica,obsidian and flint, an abundance of these items were simplyinterred in their raw state. It would appear that quantityrather than qualitydominated the periodwith the exceptionsof carved shell gorgets, some elite copper ornaments and acontinuation of fine ceramics.

Many Hopewell motifs and symbols survived intact, suchas the hand and eye, and the bifurcated falcon eye motif.However, the iconographyappears to takeon a more graphicconnotation with the dominance of warriors in the guises ofbirdmen with trophy heads, toxic toads, skulls, bone motifs,spiders and the underwater panther (Yukatena) which is afeline-winged serpent. This complex of symbols has beendubbed the Southeast Ceremonial, Death Cult or BuzzardCult and its symbolism is ubiquitous on the ceramics, as wellas copper and shell of the period.

One of the most distinctive ceramic types comes from theCaddoan culture that developed in Arkansas and influencedceramic technology throughout the southern Mississippianregion. This shell tempered Gray Ware is extant in a varietyof sophisticated forms. The tall-necked bottle, which is often

footed with a tripod or pedestal base support, is among themost elegant. Methods of decoration such as negative resistpainting, cameo (incised outlined painted areas) and engrav­ingsuggest a wide rangeofexperimentation and innovationsby the craftsperson. Stylistically and aesthetically the ce­ramic adheres to the Woodland tradition of curvilineardesigns, and a balance of contrasting color or texture.

These were the people that De Soto encountered on hisdevastating march through the Southeast between 1540 and1542. Accounts of the inhabitants and of cultural traditionsthrough the seventeenth century including ceramic manu­facture, confirm the continuation of the Mississippian tradi­tion that is evident in the archaeological record. These werethe ancestors of the nineteenth century Creek Confederationand the "Five Civilized Tribes" (Creek, Cherokee, Choctaw,Chickasaw and Seminole) that were relocated to Oklahomabetween 1835 and 1842.

Although Mississippian cultural traits extended well intothe Northeast region, especially along the Ohio River drain­age, their adaptation was limited compared to that seen inthe Southeast. The ancestors of the contemporary IroquoisFederation (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawkand Tuscarora) have a well documented and long (1000 to2000 years) occupation of the area around the southern GreatLakes and New York. Known as Woodland Owascoid, thisprehistoric Iroquois culture is linked to late Hopewell, notonly from Ohio but also from South Carolina and Georgiawhere it is believed these Siouan speakers migrated in thelate ninth century.

Typical of the Mississippian Period, villages were locatednear rivers on an alluvial plain to expedite the cultivation ofcom, squash, beans and tobacco. Complex villages wereorganized according to extended families, and as early asA.D. 1100 there is evidence of the traditional Iroquois clanand long-house. Like Mississippian sites in the south, manyOwascoid villages were surrounded by wood palisades.

Ceramics of the Woodland Owascoid Culture is reminis­cent of Hopewell in the use of ovoid, amphora-like formsmade with the paddle and anvil method. Jars have slightlyrestricted necks and thick collared rims. Decorations areusually found on the neckand rim,and the typical Woodlandstyle of contrasting textured and smooth surfaces is perva­sive.

Historic Iroquois ceramics changed little over the centu­ries except for thesquaring of the thick rim collarwith raisedcomer points. Although effigy forms occasionally appear atcomer points on the necks or rim of vessels, they appear mostoften on pipes. Iroquois representational pipes were distinc­tive in style with long stems and elaborate bowls placed atobtuse angles to the bowls. Images that typically appear onthese pipes are human faces and woodland animals that facethe smoker.

The impact of both European and u.s. contact over thepast three hundred years had a negative effect on ceramicproduction in the area. However, the Iroquois continue tomaintain their cultural affiliations both on and off the reser­vations in Ontario and New York. Recently, traditional craft­arts and ceramics in particular are being rediscovered andrefined by serious artists of the Iroquois Federation.

The Desert Southwest

The development ofceramics in the Southwestern Regionsomewhat parallels that described for the Eastern Wood­land. Although the prehistoric chronology of the region isstilldebated, it is generally accepted that ceramics along withagriculture were introduced via Mesoamerica into the desertregion at the beginning of the first millennium AD. Bothtechnologies spread rapidly throughout the region and wereadapted to local environments, needs and tastes. The firstceramics were plain Brown Wares and painted Red Wares.

The Hohokam culture is first recognizable as an entityaround AD. 1 and endured for over 1,400 years. Its culturalnascence was centered be-tween the fertile valleys of theGila and Salt Rivers in theSonoran Desert of Arizona.These masterful desert farm­ers are credited with beingthe firsl people of the NorthAmerica to utilize irrigationcanals and other methods ofcatchmenl to exploit theirwaler resources. During theColonial Period (ca. AD. 500to 900) the Hohokam sphereof influence expanded to a vastarea lhat exlended northwardthrough lhe Verde and OakCreek valleys to the ColoradoPlateau, and west, east and

south 10 the present borders of California, New Mexico andMexico.

Distinguishing attributes of the culture were found to beconsistent throughout the region during the Colonial Periodand the Sedentary Period (ca. AD. 900 to 1100). Both smalland large villages of the Hohokam contained architecturalfeatures of residential pithouses that surrounded and facedontoopen plazas, publicslructuressuchas platformmounds,caliche-capped trash mounds and ovoid-shaped ball courts.These were usually located in close proximity to river beds orin the case of large sites, main canal ditches.

Unlike other cultural areas in the Southwest, Hohokampottery production, its basic methods of manufacture anddecoration, remained remarkably consistent throughout itsdifferent chronological phases. Tempered with ground micaschist and sand, the often poor quality caliche clay was mod­eled into an astonishing variety of forms and decorated withred iron oxide paint over either the plain buff-colored claybody or a light buff slip. Many of the extant forms had obvi­ous specialized or ceremonial use such as thick-walled cen­sers that sometime occur in effigy form, groupings of animaland human figurines found in caches and musical instru­ments that include gourd effigy rattles.

The quick, painterly style of the ceramic artist is the hall­mark of Hohokam Red-on-buff vessels. The outer and uppersurfaces of Hohokam ceramics are frequently covered withbusy compositions of small repeating motifs. These motifsare often a combination of geometric, linear and life formsthat were skillfully rendered with rapid, relatively short,calligraphic-likebrush strokes. Even though painted compo­sitions were usually organized in symmelrical quarleredpanels or contiguous bands, this style of painting resulted ina rather loose, staccato visual effect for the painted field.

Decorative motifs including life forms were highly styl­ized and reduced to simple generic forms. Riparian animals,fish, frogs, snakes and birds (cranes and quail) dominate therepresentational forms. Occasionally images recognizable as

canines, felines, sheepand deerare found. Human forms, likelhe animals, are represented assimple and often repeating ele­ments such as bands of linked­armed dancers. Geometric com­positions have a distinctivetextilequality to theirslyle, anda predilection to plaited andinterlocking spiral patternsdominate most ceramic forms.

At the beginning of lheClas­sic Period (ca. AD. 1100 to 1450)numerous changes occurred inHohokam society, and lhe cul­lure began 10 withdraw fromoutlying areas and recede back

to the initial core between the Salt and Gila Rivers. Innovations such as the adaptation of multistoried structures of coursedcaliche on artificial platforms, as seen at Casa Grande National Monument, may have been in situ, Classic Perioddevelopments. However, the Hohokam were doubtless influenced by the more recent Salado culture located directly eastin the Roosevelt Lake area and the Mogollon Pueblo culture to the northeast.

Although Hohokam ceramic forms and coloration remained the same during the Classic Period, the painting style andcompositional organization are more precisely regimented and controlled than previous periods. Many appear identical toRoosevelt Black-on-white compositions except for the distinctive red-on-buff painting. There also seems to be a decrease inthe production of painted ceramics in favor of burnished Red Wares that were made earlier but were emphasized duringthe Classic Period.

When the first non-Indian, Father Eusebio Kino, arrived in this area in 1694, both the Hohokamand Salado had long sincedeparted. In their place were the Gila River Pima, and to the immediate south, the Tohono O'Odham (Papago). Althoughit is not clear if these groups are the descendants of the desert Hohokam, ethnographic research of their ceramic technologyhas aided in the understanding of the prehistoric industry.

Using similar Hohokam clays and tempers and the paddle and anvil method of construction, these desert tribes formedmostly Brown or Red Wares with painted designs of Red-on-brown or Black-on-red. Increased contact with non-nativepeoples and acculturation into the new society caused the poitery industry to suffer. Conversely, the great Californian GoldRush of 1849 and later the arrival of the railroads to the Southwest (1878 - 79) brought a large number of adventuresomeEastern tourists that were fascinated by anything "Indian."

The Maricopa, a Yuman speaking group that were orginally located on the Colorado River, settled adjacent to the Pimaon the Gila River by 1850. They adopted many of the life-ways of the Pima and Tohono O'Odham, including ceramicmanufacture. It is very difficult to distinguish late nineteenth and early twentieth century Maricopa ceramics from that oftheir neighboring tribes. However, Maricopa potters perfected a distinctive burnished Black-on-red ceramic. This may havebeen due in part to the Maricopa train station that presented the ceramist with an available market for her wares.

As the demands for Indian arts and crafts increased in modern times, the Maricopa clearly established their claim to thisdistinctive type of ceramic production. Such artists as Ida Redbird and Mary Juan are now renowned innovators of theMaricopa style and set bench marks for the continuance of quality in the pottery and its aesthetic presence.

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Suggested Reading

Brose, David S., James A. Brown and David W. Penny1985 Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York, in Association with The Detroil

Institute of Art, Delroit.

Ditterl, Alfred E., Jr., and Donald E. Dove, editors1985 1983 Hohokam Symposium, Phoenix Chapter of the Arizona Archaeological Society, Occasional Papers, No.2,

vols. I and II, Phoenix.

Haury, Emil W.1976 The Hohokam, Desert Farmers and Craftsmen, The University of Arizona Press, Tucson.

Hudson, Charles1976 The Southeastern Indians, The University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville.

Russell, Frank1975 The Pima Indians, Twenty sixthAnnual Report oftheBureau ofAmerican Ethnology 1904-1905, Washington, D.C.1908, reprinted and edited by Bernard L. Fontana, the University of Arizona Press, Tucson.

Spier, Leslie1978 Yuman Tribes of the Gila River, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1933, reprinted by Dover Publications,

Inc., New York.

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