Featured Guidance with research

It looks like it might be very very old, like a thousand or more years. That is a very ancient pot.

 

I know round-bottomed pots are made some place(s) in Central America. They also make braided rings for them to sit in.

I'll warn you in advance that Googling for 'Central American pot ring' does not get what you want. Use 'pottery' instead.

 

Dr Katherine's Post from page (OP)

This is the Pot to be appraised. I think it is Native American and very old. Hundreds of years at the very least.

 

The lack of wear around the rim and neck give me pause. Thses pieces were made to be used,this one doesnt seem like it was .

 

I tried to enhance the photo to see if there are bands or other decoration. It almost looks like there might have been bands around it that have faded. Can you tell? That's a rather well finished rim.

 

Round bottomed pots have been made in many cultures around the world. The form is not unusual. Round bottoms work well on uneven ground, propped on stones in or around a fire, or fit into holes on the top of a simple stove.

With no decoration, and without being able to analyze the clay body, there is not alot to go on in identifying the origin or your pot. The very symmetrical shape, and the subtle drag lines around the circumference, would suggest it was made on a potters wheel, as opposed to being hand built with a coiling technique. To make a round bottomed pot on a wheel, the shape is first formed seated upright. When slightly dry and firm ("leather hard"), it is set on the wheel on its mouth, and the base trimmed to the desired shape. The single identifying feature might be the treatment of the stepped rim, which looks like it was formed with a profile tool. It also looks like it might be mimicking the rim of a metal vessel, which would point to a culture with a metalworking tradition as well as the potters' wheel.

The traditional round bottomed shape, combined with the evidence of higher level technologies, might point to an origin in India, or elsewhere in the Middle East or Asia.

Here are some contemporary water pots made in India:

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/getting-crafty-india-asias-creative-hub

 

I forgot to ask - what size is it? That might provide a clue as to its original intended use.

 

I agree with 2manybooks, that the pot was made on a potter's wheel, based on the type of rim, the symmetry, and the evidence that it was trimmed. That would eliminate the possibility that it is Native American Indian, since no NA Indian potters ever used a potters wheel.

As pointed out, since similar pottery is made in so many other places in the world, about the only way to tell definitively where it is from is through an analysis of the clay itself, which is impossible to do from a photo alone. Lacking that, the picture of pots from India would suggest a place to start research.

 

I agree with 2many and Taupou, a round bottomed pot is not unusual (think of placing it in the sand etc), and it looks made on a potter's wheel.

I don't think it is from India. Maybe further east? Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia?

 

Ah, the pitfalls!. I made the mistake of googling ‘dating jewellery’ Who knew Jewelry could be a name?

 

So you bumped into Gemma then.

 

Yes, it is. That rules out a number of regions.

Sis, I wonder if it is stoneware, can you tell from the photos?

 

I can't. The OP might be able to though. If you touch your tongue (to a damaged area if possible) low fired earthenware it will sort of "stick". If you touch your tongue to stoneware it won't so much. Of course not everyone wants to lick their pots.

 

Agreed it looks Native American -- I've never seen one with that style lip (but I'm also not a pottery expert). Very carefully made - is there any way you could describe the interior by peering at it with a light? Coiling might be visible inside, and/or marks left from the tips of the potter's fingers. Could be helpful.

 

Hi,
The pot definitely was decorated. It is faint in a couple areas but it was decorated. Here is a photo of the rim of the pot. It is not symmetrical as it is wider in some places than others. The inside of the pot shows something black was mixed with the red clay.

 

I have rewrapped the bowl and won't be licking it anytime soon

 

The pot at one time was decorated. What is left of the decoration is very faint.

 

This pot also looks as if it was made using a coiling technique. If you look real close at the outside of the pot you can see what looks like lines every 1/4 of an inch. This is why I was wondering if it might be Caddo pottery.

 

The pot may have been decorated, but if we cannot see the pattern there are no stylistic clues we can use to help determine origin.

Coiling is a widely used method of constructing pottery, appearing in traditional societies all over the world. It is not unique to Native American pottery.

Finishing a pot on a wheel can also leave lines on the surface. As the potter smooths the surface with their hands, or a cloth or sponge, small bits may be dragged along, leaving lines that spiral up the surface. Most coil built pottery is finished by wiping, paddling or scraping to create a smooth surface, removing most signs of the underlying coils, although there are some Native American ceramics that left closely spaced coils as a corrugated decorative feature.

Pottery made on a wheel may have some variation, but in general is more symmetrical than one built by hand.

A clay body is composed of a variety of materials, some of which may be more absorbent and/or may react differently to firing conditions. The black specs inside the pot might be a result of the firing conditions. When access to air is uneven during firing, localized "reducing" conditions may be created where the oxygen is reduced or depleted. Such conditions might be expected inside of a vessel, depending on how the pots were stacked in the fire/kiln. All or some components of the clay may turn black under reducing conditions, while the same components may turn red when oxygen is freely available.

Another possible explanation for the black specs is a differential reaction to something that was put into the pot when it was in use.

 

Well thank you for posting your pot. Very interesting reading and learning.