Water Iconography
Peoples across the Southwest developed unique design approaches to decorating pottery. Not surprisingly, there are a number of motifs related to water that are shared by many different groups. Among these are waves, tadpoles, dragonflies, and frogs. Hopis, after around 1880, applied katsina figures, especially Palhikwmana (Water Drinking Maiden).
Gallup Black-on-white canteen. ca. 1040 CE, Gila Pueblo, AZ. Ancestral Pueblo culture. Collected by H.H. Scorse. Max. length: 3.5 in. (9.0 cm.). (Catalog No. GP-2085)
Hopi polychrome canteen with Tawa (Sun) design katsina face, ca. 1900, Oraibi, Hopi Mesas, AZ. Unknown artist. Nelle Dermont Collection, ASM purchase 1920. Max. length: 8.5 in. (21.6 cm.). (Catalog No. 8306)
Zuni Polychrome canteen with frog appliqués and dragonfly designs, Late 1800s, Zuni, NM. Unknown artist. Nelle Dermont Collection, ASM purchase 1920. Max. length: 11.0 in. (28.1 cm.). (Catalog No. 8327)
The chain on this canteen may have been added by the collector.
Side view of 8327.