After my dad passed away in 2011, I found this pot in a box on his closet shelf. He never showed it to me or even mentioned it my entire life. I showed it to a museum curator and she said she didn’t think it was native American. Her guess was that it’s south of the border: Mexican and Pre-Columbian. The shape, paint source, surface finish, and design set are not Southwestern Pueblo (north of the border, that is). She would further guess that it is regionally Western Mexico (Jalisco or Colima) and age could be between Classic to Post-Classic period (anywhere between 600 to 1000AD). She said the black speckles on the surface are called dendrites and are evidence of age.They take forever to form and it’s one of the identifying factors for authenticity (it can’t be faked). There are what appear to be ashes on the inside.

The pot is about 6.5 inches tall, with a diameter of about 10.25 inches at its largest point. It weighs about 3.5 pounds.