This is a deeply carved tri-color plate by Nathan Youngblood.  The piece is fully carved and polished, deep red, tan and buff.  The design has a tan polished edge.  The center of the plate has the sun rising through the clouds. It is surrounded by a water serpent (avanyu) which encircles the plate.  The body fo the avanyu is made up of cloud, water, wind, lightning, and rain designs.  The central section is polished a deep red.  The contrast of the polished red and tan is stunning!  It is an exceptionally intricate plate with sharp edges and complex patterns. The plate is traditionally fired and on Nathan’s red pieces, after they are fired, he uses screwdrivers to scrape the background area and the side of the carving.  This can take almost as much time as the carving or polishing itself!  Amazing the amount of time that goes into each vessel and yet how stunning they appear!  It is signed on the bottom in the clay with his name and hallmarked name in Tewa, which means “Deer Path”. The very last photo is Nathan working on this piece in August 2019 “cleaning the channels” in the background of the carving.  He just finished the plate to his level of precision in March 2020!