4 ms·
It has surprised me that the majority of pottery shards I find in the New Mexico desert are painted. The unpainted ones are the exceptions. So these must not ha
by hirundo 4y ago
It has surprised me that the majority of pottery shards I find in the New Mexico desert are painted. The unpainted ones are the exceptions. So these must not have been special ceremonial pots, but for every day use. The fact that the pueblo people put such a high value on decoration for everyday objects is fascinating. I think of aboriginals as utilitarians struggling to survive. But if you're taking the time to decorate normal pots, survival must be relatively assured.
I'd like to exchange lives with someone who made those pots for a for a few weeks, and compare notes. I wonder if I have more or less free time than they do.
- comte7092 4y ago>I think of aboriginals as utilitarians struggling to survive. Grouping all pre Colombian Native Americans into one bucket is akin to talking about “Africa” as one indistinguishable place today. There was a massive diversity of societies and cultures that spanned the continent with trading networks that crisscrossed the continent as well. Most European account of initial contact tend to describe a life of relative abundance, people certainly weren’t struggling to survive any more than your average 15th century European.
- Mistletoe 4y agoI feel the same. Nearly every shard we found had painting on it. These people were decorating their daily lives and tools, celebrating them with art. My brother is a potter and it was fascinating to listen to him talk about how they did the polychrome pots. For anyone reading this far, here is the kind of pots we are discussing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Lazaro_archaeological_site https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Lazaro_archaeological_site