This is an exceptional miniature by Nancy Youngblood.  It is one of her very deeply carved melon bowls which swirl down from the neck to the base.  There are sixteen ribs and each rib is carved into the clay and fully stone polished.  Consider that each rib has two “sides” to be polished and the surface area of the piece is about double its size! This jar also has a lid which is carved to fit exactly into the rim of the bowl.  Amazingly, the front and the back of the lid are stone polished!  Nancy said of this type of lid:

“The kiva step lid.  I saw that design a lot when I was a young girl both on pottery and on my mom’s embroidery. I wanted to try that pattern with a lid. It’s tough to do because lids are so fragile. You have to make it solid and then cut into it to get the shape. Lids are probably some of the hardest things to do with the pottery.”  Nancy Youngblood, Spoken Through Clay

The coloration on this bowl is a striking deep red.  The deep ribs and the deep color are in perfect to reflect the light at every angle!  Nancy has won numerous awards for her melon bowls, and this is undoubtedly a classic of her style!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay.