Tonita Roybal remains one of the great innovative names in San Ildefonso pottery.  This is an exceptional long-neck water jar that was coil-built, stone polished, painted, and traditionally fired.  The shape of the jar is elegant with graceful flow from shoulder to neck.  At the top of the shoulder is a band of clouds and below are rain and bird tail patterns.  They extend downward to seem to accentuate the round shape of the shoulder.  I really like how she left the neck plain with no designs and the perfection of the polished surface!  This style of work from Tonita is confident in form and firing and a lesson in “less is more”.  The jar was fired a silver-black coloration with small, silvery gunmetal areas.  It is in very good to near excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration, or repair, but some minor surface scratches that are not unexpected over the past 100 years.   It is signed, “Tonita”.