This is a complex large jar by Ida Sahmie.  The piece has a round body and a square neck.  The body of the jar is fully polished.  There are four Yei figures painted onto the clay.   “Yei” (pronounced “yay”) is the Navajo name for the benevolent supernatural beings who bring their healing power to medicinal ceremonies still performed today.  Each is separated by a circular Navajo basket.  The designs of each basket are also painted.  The black is bee-weed and the red and white are additional clay slips.  Below the shoulder, she created a speckling of the bee-weed meant to represent the earth.  The mouth of the bowl is square and is painted with a rain and lightning design in a sash style with the black painted on the polished red.  The piece was traditionally fired outdoors.  It is signed on the bottom, “Ida Sahmie 2021”.   Ida is the only Navajo potter creating this unique style of ethnographic pottery that captures the stories and world of Dine symbolism.  The last photo is of Ida holding the jar here in our Santa Fe gallery.