Lot 125

Mississippian Caddo Incised Pottery Jar with Swirl Motif

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Lot 125
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Mississippian Caddo Incised Pottery Jar with Swirl Motif
Mississippian Caddo Incised Pottery Jar with Swirl Motif
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Mississippian Caddo Incised Pottery Jar with Swirl Motif

Estimate: $800 - $1,200

Starting Bid: $400

(0 Bids)
by Artemis Fine Arts
June 25, 2026 9:00 AM MDT (In Progress)
Live Auction
686 S. Taylor Avenue
Suite 108
Louisville, CO, US 80027

Native American, Caddo, Mississippian culture, ca. 1200–1500 CE. A hand-built earthenware jar attributed to the Caddoan potters of the Mississippian world, its silhouette rising from a rounded base to a slightly flaring rim that ripples gently along the lip. The upper register has been deeply scored with parallel hatching, producing a softly brushed surface broken by a pair of small applied lugs set just below the rim. A horizontal incised band cinches the vessel at its waist, dividing the textured neck from the lower body where the potter has worked the clay into bold, rhythmic swirls, each curl spiraling inward like a stylized current. The combed and incised treatment is characteristic of Caddo craftsmanship in the trans-Mississippi south, where vessels of this kind served domestic and ceremonial roles alike, often interred with the dead in ancestral mounds. The buff-toned clay retains its smoke-fired warmth, and the volute decoration, perhaps a reference to water, wind, or cosmological motion, lends the jar an almost kinetic presence. A compelling expression of Late Prehistoric Caddo ceramic tradition, when potters of the Red and Arkansas River valleys produced some of the most refined wares of the Eastern Woodlands. Size: 9" W x 8.1" H x 8.7" D (22.9 cm W x 20.6 cm H x 22.1 cm D).

Provenance: private Colorado, USA Collection; ex-private Denver, Colorado, USA collection; ex-private Flushing, New York and Ridgeway, Colorado, USA collection

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Item # 203022

  • Condition: Fair. Professionally repaired with restoration and repainting over break lines. A few chips to rim, as well as nicks and abrasions throughout. Some break lines visible on interior. Nice remaining detail.

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $20,000