In the 1950s Maria Martinez created a series of pieces that were simply stone polished with no design.  As she primarily made the pottery and polished it this was fitting with the other pieces of her career.  This bowl is highly polished and fired a striking metallic gunmetal coloration from the firing.  It has that “mirror-like” surface for which Maria was famous.  Take a look at the photo of the top and you can see the black lines of the firing grate, as the bowl was fired upside down!  It’s always fascinating to be able to “read” the surface of a piece and understand it was made and fired.  The bowl is signed in the clay, “Maria Poveka”.  This is a combination of her Anglo and Tewa names.  Her name, “Poveka” means “Water Lilly”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.

Maria Martinez Signatures