WOW!  This is an exceptional large jar by Richard Zane Smith.  The jar is coil-built with the coils left exposed on the exterior. The coils are then incised to create the designs, and various colors of clay are added. This piece is inspired by classic Iroquois and Wyandot forms. The rim is polished, as is the interior of the jar in a swirling design. The neck is incised with angular plant-like designs.  However, it is the body of the jar which is so spectacular. The jar has eight panels of etched design, each with different flowers. There are violets, sunflowers, columbines, and others.  Each panel is complex in design  and flow of the plants  They are also separated by vertical bands of design.  Note as well the use of coloration throughout the jar and the complexity of each flower and design.  It must have been so time-consuming to create a piece with so much detail and color!  Just beautiful.  All the colors were applied before the piece was fired. It is signed, “Richard Zane Smith”.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  

“This style is a transitional piece from op art to Wyandot/Iroquois style. So many of the Wyandot necks have four points (castellation). Then there are a lot that are five or six and then nine. I don’t know if there is a significance. People wonder why. Theories? I have my own theory. People lived in longhouses and they had lots of dogs and they would run in and out of the longhouse all the time. To keep a cooking pot turned upside down, you would keep a dog from licking it. You could also get the pot to air out and dry, and you wouldn’t have to worry about mold.”  Richard Zane Smith, Spoken Through Clay