Large Hopi Tulip Vase, Unsigned
This piece of Hopi pottery is a tall, nearly cylindrical “tulip vase.” The tulip shape was first made in the 1920’s-1930’s, as a result of the influence of the style of European art pottery on Hopi pottery. This style of pot was never made there before the 1920’s, but due to the popularity of the design, it has been made off and on ever since.
The vase’s varigated tan and beige background is a gorgeous example of the blush that results from being fired in an outdoor fire pit with sheep dung smothering the fire, in the Hopi method of traditional pottery firing.
Designs in dark brown, painted in the Hopi tradition with yucca brush, incorporates design elements that were discovered in the Sikyatki archeological site on the eastern side of the Hopi First Mesa. The vase is decorated with bird motifs which are typical of the old designs. It features two sets of eagle or parrot tails, each alternating with a pair of playful bird heads with open beaks.
The father of the man who sold us this pot was a professor of Anthropology. This pot was one of the gifts he received from the people he worked with on the Hopi Reservation. The Seller’s mother’s notes said this one was made in 1931.
This vase is not signed, but there is a mark in pencil on the base: a price or $1.00 (NOT the starting bid!). Being unsigned is typical of older Hopi pots. In fact, few Hopi pots were signed by their makers before the 1960s, so this by itself is not a detractor. To this day, some Hopi pots that are being made are still unsigned.
This pot measures 3.125 inches across its base, 4.75 inches at the widest, and 3.5 inches at the top. It is 9.375 inches tall.
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