Ethel Shields (Acoma Pueblo, 1938-2021). Bichrome turtle flask, n.d. Signed "ETHEL / ACOMA, N.M / HANDMADE" on underside of base. An adorable pottery flask in the form of a turtle with elaborate geometric and zoomorphic decoration on one side. Modeled after traditional canteens, the turtle is hollow with the animal's mouth doubling as the spout of the vessel and a pair of suspension loops tied with a leather strap flanking the neck. Four outstretched limbs and a petite pointed tail extend from the convex shell, which is painted with the spiraling form of a slithering serpent, likely intended as Avanyu - a Tewa deity represented as a plumed serpent who guards waterways and serves as a harbinger of storms and a protector of the Pueblo people. Size: 6.7" L x 1.8" W x 8.3" H (17 cm x 4.6 cm x 21.1 cm)

About Ethel Shields: "Ethel Shields was born into Acoma Pueblo in 1926. Her mother was Delores Sanchez. Among her siblings were Katherine Lewis and Marie S. Juanico. All three girls learned to make pottery as they were growing up. Delores lived to be 103 and taught some of her grandchildren to make pottery, too. Ethel sold her first pieces around 1938. During her career she made traditional polychrome and Mimbres-Revival jars, bowls, effigy pots and canteens, nativities, Storytellers, Christmas ornaments and miniatures. Her favorite designs included turtles, human figures, birds, snakes, animals, corn, feathers-in-a-row and fine lines. Ethel married a jeweler, Don Shields, and their family moved to Tucson for 12 years. She worked for the Indian Center there. After they returned to Acoma, she began making nativity sets. Over the years she made hundreds of them. Then she started making storytellers and other human figures. She made a trip to Mesa Verde with her family and was inspired by the effigy jars and canteens on display that had been found in pueblos abandoned 800 years before. When she got back home she studied ancient black-on-white Anasazi and Tularosa designs. Then she started making effigy bird and turtle forms based on the ancient shapes and forms. She made storyteller pitchers with faces, arms and legs covered in babies. She made canteens in the shape of corn cobs and turtles. She started participating in the Santa Fe Indian Market in the early 1980s and earned many awards over the years." (from "Native American Pottery: Through the Eyes of the Pot" website)

Provenance: private British Columbia, Canada collection, gifted from aunt in Tucson, Arizona, USA, acquired prior to 1994

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#182463

Signed "ETHEL / ACOMA, N.M / HANDMADE" on underside of base. Two stable hairline surface fissures to suspension loops and a very minor scratch to black pigment on shell. Otherwise, intact and excellent with good preservation of decorative program. Old collection label on underside of base.