268 POTTERY OP THE ANCIENT PUEBLOS. 



slight admixture of mica, which may have come from the use of pulver- 

 ized micaceous rock. 



Construction. — Xo oue can say just how the materials were manipu- 

 lated, fashioned into vessels, and baked; yet many facts can be gleaned 

 from a critical examination of the vessels themselves; and an approxi- 

 mate idea of the various processes employed may be formed by a study 

 of the methods of modern potters of the same region or of corresponding 

 grades of culture. 



It is evident that the vessels were built and finished by the hands 

 alone; no wheel was used, although supports, such as shallow earthen 

 vessels, baskets, and gourds were certainly employed to a considerable 

 extent. Primitive processes of building have varied considerably. The 

 simplest method perhaps was that of shaping a single mass of clay by 

 pressure with the fingers, either with or without the assistance of a mold 

 or support. The mold would be useful in shaping shallow vessels, such 

 as plates, cups, and bowls. The walls of vessels of eccentric forms or 

 having constricted apertures would be carried upward by the addition 

 of small more or less elongated masses of clay, with no support but the 

 hand or an implement held in the hand. Casting proper, in regularly 

 constructed molds, was practiced only by the more cultured races, such 

 as the Peruvians. A variety of methods may have been employed in 

 the construction of a single piece. 



Surface Finish. — A great deal of attention was given to surface 

 finish. In the coiled ware the imbricate edges of the fillets were generally 

 either smoothed down and obliterated entirely, or treated in such a way 

 as to give a variety of pleasing effects of relief decoration. Vessels 

 with smooth surfaces, whether built by coiling, modeling, or molding, 

 very often received a thin coat of fine liquid clay, probably after par- 

 tial drying and polishing. This took the place of the enamels used by 

 more accomplished potters, and being usually white, it gave a beautiful 

 surface upon which to execute designs in color. Before the color was 

 applied the surface received a considerable degree of polish by rubbing 

 with a suitable implement of stone or other material. Attention was 

 given chiefly to surfaces exposed to view — the interior of bowls and the 

 exterior of narrow-necked vases. 



Firing. — The firing of the ancient ware seems to have been carefully 

 and successfully accomplished. The methods probably did not differ 

 greatly from those practiced by the modern Pueblo tribes. The ware 

 is, as a rule, light in color, but is generally much clouded by the dark 

 spots that result from imperfections in the methods of applying the tire. 

 The heat was rarely great enough to produce anything like vitrifactiou 

 of the surface, and the paste is seldom as hard as our stone ware. 



Glaze. — A great deal has been said about the glaze of native Ameri- 

 can wares, which exists, if at all, through accident. The surface of the 

 white ware of nearly all sections received a high degree of mechanical 

 polish, and the effect of tiring was often to heighten this and give 



