218 - Water jar, known as an “olla”

Water jar, known as an “olla” Zuni (A:shiwi), New Mexico, United States Late 19th–early 20th century Terracotta with a cream-colored engobe, decorated with black and red paint; surface wear; small ritual perforation on the body. Height: 23 cm; diameter: 33 cm. Former label under the base bearing the number 74. History: According to the information provided, this jar and the one accompanying it were transported from Quebec City to Le Havre in 1965. A preserved label from their shipping crate mentions the Cunard Line’s ocean liner Carmania. The generously rounded body tapers toward a wide opening with a short neck. On the cream-colored slip, crisscrossing hatched bands frame red triangles and black motifs with cut-out outlines. The alternation of solid areas and fine lines gives the decoration a sweeping movement that harmonizes with the vase’s curves. Ollas were used to collect, transport, and store water. The decoration on this example resembles stylized bat figures, whose hatched wings are associated with rain. A jar in the collection of the Vilcek Foundation, dated around 1880, features a very similar composition and nearly identical dimensions. General bibliography: Dwight P. Lanmon and Francis H. Harlow, *The Pottery of Zuni Pueblo*, Santa Fe, Museum of New Mexico Press, 2008. Comparative reference: Vilcek Foundation, Zuni k’yabokya de’ele (water jar), circa 1880, inv. VF2014.01.02, height 22.9 cm, diameter 33 cm; reproduced in Cassandra Sandoval et al., *Pueblo Treasures from the Silverman Museum*, Denver Public Library, 2005, pp. 58–59, cat. no. 22. Expert: Serge Reynes, Origine Expert