Harrison Begay, Jr. has won numerous awards over the years for his deep carved pottery.  This jar is inspired by a canteen shape, but here Harrison has made three handles. They are each highly polished, which is amazing that they didn’t break in polishing or firing!  The design has a turtle on two sides. They are separated by water designs.  On the “third” side, there are a series of interlocking stars.  The highly polished surfaces are a striking contrast to the matte areas.  As the design flows around the surface of the jar, Harrison contrasts angular and circular designs.  Harrison says that he tries to carve his pieces so that the imagery looks to be in motion.  Note as well the style of carving, which has a beveled appearance to the angle of the cuts into the clay.  This jar has been fired brown, so there are some striking color variations as the piece is turned.  The interesting part about the brown firings is that they always feel close in color to the traditional Navajo pottery, which is also brown.   The jar is signed on the bottom in the clay.