The clay forming the paste of these pieces is called Apache clay, and is very different from that employed in making ordinary ware (see p. 22); it is used without the addition of any tempering material.
Just before moulding is started, the clay is carefully gone over in a final search for small pebbles. The moulding differs only in detail from that of vessels made from other kinds of paste. A pat very much thinner than those described above is made and placed in the puki. The vessel is built by the addition of rolls which are of smaller diameter than usual—about three-eighths of an inch. When the body has been built to the desired height, the scraping and smoothing with the kajepe are begun. At first the vessel, like the others, is cylindrical; but the scraping, first on the
PLATE 17
a. Putting the finishing touches on an olla. The potter’s left hand is supporting the soft neck while she shapes it from the outside with the kajepe. In front is a pile of base-moulds (pukis) for small bowls; at the potter’s right is a lard-pail of water and a reserve supply of clay wrapped in a canvas.
b. Applying a horizontal handle to a small olla; two gourd spoons (kajepes) are lying on the table.
interior and then on the exterior, thins the sides and gives it a spherical shape. After the smoothing the sides are from one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch thick, much thinner than the walls of vessels made of other kinds of paste. When the body has assumed the desired shape, additional rolls are added to form the lip, which is scraped, smoothed, and flared with the kajepe. During the entire period of moulding small pebbles are constantly being found and removed, for Apache clay contains a great many more pebbles than the other clays. After the finishing touches have been completed, the rim is indented, and a vertical handle is added as described below (see p. 50).
The indenting of the rim is done with the thumb and forefinger of the right hand. The thumb is placed under the flaring rim, with the nail vertical; the forefinger rests upon the lip, the nail horizontal. The fingers are in about the position they would assume were the potter holding a pencil. A gentle downward pressure of the hand indents the rim slightly, the nail of the thumb leaving a small mark on the under side of the lip. This pressure is repeated at intervals of about three-quarters of an inch until the entire lip has been given an indented or undulating edge.
The construction described above is that of a small olla about six inches in diameter. Larger ollas are built in several stages in the same manner as ollas made of the other forms of paste.[33]