This is a a wonderful jar, built heavy for pueblo home use, with great patina, fire clouds and 4 parading mid-body birds from Zia pueblo. It is definitely 19th century and has had ethnographic use. The surface is warmly worn and patina’d, but not too much; all designs are intact with some minor surface wear. It had an indented bottom, common in olla’s and water jars. However, the large mid-body, beyond 12″ in diameter would make water a heavy load; thus my guess that it could have been a storage jar. The parrots are all framed in red rainbow bands giving the jar a happy and spacious feel. There are also botanical element such as red berries and bisected black leaves. A classic jar, beautifully formed and painted; warmly used.
Condition is original and unrestored with ethnographic wear.