Storyteller Pottery

Storyteller Pottery

For many years, storyteller pottery or storyteller dolls been a part of the Pueblo pottery tradition. The storyteller doll is a clay figure made by the Pueblo people of New Mexico. It is a figure of a storyteller, which is usually a man or a woman with his or her mouth open, surrounded by figures of children or other images that represent listening to a story being told. In 400 AD, these figurines, usually in human female figures, were an integral part of the Anasazi culture. These storyteller pottery disappeared 1500 and 1875, when the first missionaries, who were considered scholars, denounced the making of figurative clay pieces. Storyteller pottery flourished following these years, and became very popular at the Cochiti Pueblo just south of Santa Fe. The storyteller pottery could be seen in forms of animals, birds, caricatures of outsiders, and more recently, in the images of mothers and grandfathers telling stories or singing to children. The first contemporary storyteller pottery doll was created by Helen Cordero of the Cochiti Pueblo back in 1964. She designed and hand built the piece in honor of her grandfather, Santiago Quintana, who was a storyteller. The Native American storyteller is an individual that shares stories of Native American heritage through tales passed down from ancestors. The rich cultural and religious heritage of the generations that preceded our society helps to develop an understanding of how the past has influenced the present. It also reinforces the importance of understanding one's own family history. Storyteller pottery dolls are hand coiled and shaped with natural clays that are gathered from the earth. These figurines or pottery pieces are then fired and intricately hand painted. Today's most sought after storyteller pottery dolls or pieces have been created by such Jemez artists as Edwina Tosa Tortalita, Felicia Fragua, Juanita Fragua, Gabriel Gonzales, Mary Toya, Maxine Toya, Virginia Lucero, and Alvin Yepa.