Lot 346
Native American, Southeast United States, Mississippian, Caddo culture, ca. 1200 to 1500 CE. A Caddo engraved blackware pottery bottle of striking visual gravity, its dark, burnished surface animated by flowing incised lines that spiral, divide, and reunite across the rounded body like a controlled current. The vessel is formed with a globular body and a short, slightly flaring neck, proportions typical of Caddo bottles made for ritual or ceremonial use. The surface is carefully polished to a deep black finish, creating a luminous ground against which the engraved decoration reads with quiet authority. Incised lines cut through the slip to reveal the warm clay beneath, producing a subtle but deliberate contrast. The decoration is organized around sweeping curvilinear motifs that coil inward toward small circular nodes, each marked with a cross-like element. Size: 10.6" Diameter x 12.1" H (26.9 cm x 30.7 cm)
These spirals are balanced by vertical and arcing lines that divide the body into rhythmic sections, while areas of fine crosshatching add texture and visual pause. The design is continuous and well planned, wrapping the vessel in a unified composition rather than a series of discrete panels.
Engraved blackware bottles such as this are closely associated with the ancestral Caddo peoples of the southern Plains and Lower Mississippi Valley. Their iconography is often interpreted as referencing movement, balance, and cosmological order, themes central to Caddo ceremonial life. The bottle form itself is widely understood as a prestige object, likely used in ritual contexts rather than everyday domestic activity. Technically accomplished and visually restrained, this bottle exemplifies the sophistication of Caddo ceramic art. Its power lies not in excess ornament, but in the confident use of line, proportion, and surface, resulting in a vessel that feels both deliberate and alive.
Provenance: private Denver, Colorado, USA collection, acquired prior to 2002; ex-New York, USA collection, acquired November 8, 1989; ex-Caddo Trading Company, Murfreesboro, Arkansas, USA
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#201029
- Condition: Professional repairs to rim and neck with restoration and repainting over break lines; all done very well and difficult to notice. A few minor nicks to surface commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent presentation with good remaining detail and rich earthen deposits on interior. Old collection labels on underside of base.
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| $750 | $1,499 | $50 |
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| $3,000 | $7,499 | $250 |
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| $15,000 + | $1,000 |