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About Native American Arts & Crafts
Definition of Terms
- Appliques
- Clay figures attached to the surface of a pot,
usually done by potters at Jemez, Cochiti and etc.
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- Avanyu
- Feathered serpent, horned serpent or water
serpent which is found on many types of Pueblo pottery. Is thought to represent water.
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- Black
on Black ( Black Matte)
- A type of black pottery, usually Santa Clara
or San Ildefonso, in which part of the pot has a dull black finish and the rest has a
highly polished black finish. The matte or dull black finish usually forms a distinct
pattern.
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- Blackware
- Any black pottery but most often refers to San
Ildefonso or Santa Clara pottery that has been fired using the reduction method.
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- Crazing
- Find cracks in the slip of pottery most often
caused by uneven shrinkage of the clay.
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- Facets
- Imperfections in the polished surface of a
pot. These are not desired.
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- Fire cloud
- Darkened blemish on the pot surface caused by
fuel resting against the pot.
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- Greenware
- Commercially prepared pottery forms which are
often then painted by an artist. These pots are considered non traditional.
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- Historic Pottery
- Usually referred to as pottery produced after
the arrival of Europeans and prior to 1900. This time period may be too narrow as I
have heard pottery made in the 1900's referred to as historic.
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- Incising
- The method of carving a design into pottery
using an instrument similar to an awl.
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- Mineral Paints
- Paints made from inorganic compounds such as
iron.
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- Non Traditional Pottery
- Pottery made incorporating techniques which
have not been traditionally used. (I.E. potters wheel, electric kiln, or greenware)
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- Pitting
- Small pitted imperfections found in pottery.
Generally these are caused by impure clay or expansions and contractions. Most often
caused by small pieces of sand in the clay which do not adhere to the surface after
fireing. Also referred to as "spawling".
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- Polychrome
- Pottery which contains three or more different
colors.
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- Shard
- Broken pieces of pottery often used as a
tempering agent.
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- Slip
- Thin layer of watered down clay applied to the
surface of the pot before firing.
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- Tempering Agent
- Any additive added to the clay which
counteracts shrinkage during the firing process. Materials used might be shards, volcanic
rock, and sand.
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- Traditional
Pottery
- Any pottery whose construction conforms to
ancient, traditional methods.
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- Vegetal Paint
- Paints made from organic materials.
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