Nampeyo, the best potter of her time, helped revitalize the original form of Hopi pottery, Sikyatki.  She developed her style from the traditional bowls, pots, jars, and water carriers of the Tewa and Walpi people, which were the tribes of her parents.  Although, Hopi pottery had survived through many generations, it was beginning to disappear during Nampeyo's youth.  Nampeyo was credited for bringing the dying form of Sikyatki pottery back to life.  She helped rekindle the interest of Hopi pottery into the lives of the consumer and her contemporaries.
    At the time of Nampeyo's birth, Hopi pottery was indebted to the styles and designs of the Zuni people.  The exact year or date of Nampeyo's birth is unknown, but thought to be between 1856 and 1860.  In Hopi custom, the father's mother, grandmother names the baby.  So, Nampeyo was originally named Tcu-mana or Snake Girl, but the Tewa people call her Nampeyo, which she is known as today.  Nampeyo and Tcu-mana are identical in meaning.  She had three brothers leaving her the only girl in her family.  One of Nampeyo's brothers, Tom Polocca, would later play an influential role in helping her become discovered as an expert Hopi potter.
    It is unclear how and from who Nampeyo first learned the art of pottery.  Two books on Nampeyo's pottery, Kramer's book Nampeyo and her pottery and Collins' book Nampeyo, Hopi Potter, had different beliefs on who introduced Nampeyo to pottery making.  Collins' book says that Nampeyo learned the art of pottery from her grandmother.  It goes on to say that when Nampeyo was younger she often went with her father to her grandmother's house where she sat and watched her make pottery until she was old enough to try it on her own.  This would not be unlikely because the father still was a big part of his original family and village and visited there often, since he now lives with his wife's family.  In Kramer's book, it is said that Nampeyo spent much time with her mother, from whom she learned the art of pottery making.  At this time the Tewa people were the best known potters of the Hopi area.  During her younger years she was only allowed to watch, but as she grew older her mother began letting her make pots on her own.  Nampeyo's mother let Nampeyo learn the art of pottery making through trial and error, rather than through intense instructions.  This reasoning is also plausible because the Hopi people place much attention on their youth and stay very close with them.  Nampeyo's earliest designs consisted of "…kachina faces, figures, and abstract curvilinear designs…" (Kramer 62).  These designs were from the earliest documented works of Nampeyo.
    Nampeyo seems to have been a prodigy, for it was unusual for a girl to begin practicing the art of pottery so young.  Usually pottery making was done by the older generation, so when Nampeyo was young and making pottery she was called "old lady" (Kramer 14).  "Old lady" is now a term of respect instead of ridicule.  During this time period when a young woman was referred to as an "old lady" it meant that she was unable to perform the duties of the younger women or was old and decrepit.  The Hopi women laughed at Nampeyo's skill because they said she should have been cooking with corn instead of making pottery.  Cooking with corn was the traditional activity of the young women of Nampeyo's tribe.  This ridicule did not deter Nampeyo from creating pottery.
    Despite being a young pottery maker, Nampeyo was also seen as one of the prettiest women in the village.  This attribute helped her become known outside of the First Mesa.  Due to her attractiveness, Nampeyo was the subject of many photographs portraying different aspects of Hopi life.  This photography took place during the time that Nampeyo was being discovered as one of the best pottery makers.  Influential friends of her brothers took these pictures.  Nampeyo's first husband, Kwi-vio-ya, left her because he said she was too pretty and he felt that her beauty would lead some other man to take her away.  The mention of a first husband was only briefly mentioned in an article written by Edmund Nequatewa, Nampeyo, Famous Hopi Potter.
    A few years later, Nampeyo married her second husband, a Walpi man named Lessou, who helped her improve the style of her pottery.  The extent of Lessou's influence on Nampeyo's pottery also varied in different books about Nampeyo and her pottery.  Their marriage ceremony was nine days long and afterwards Lessou moved in with Nampeyo's family, which was the tradition of the Hopi village.  They had six children who carried on the tradition of pottery making with their own unique styles.
    Nampeyo's ideas for designs and styles for her pottery were inspired from the many ancient ruins that were located in the area surrounding First Mesa, where she and Lessou resided.  Many archaeologists have since excavated such ruins as the Sikyatki ruins and found thousands of potsherds or pieces of broken pottery.  Nampeyo visited the Sikyatki ruin and incorporated some of the potsherds designs into her pottery.  When she first began painting the ancient designs, she copied them, but as she became more talented, she was able to come up with her own unique alterations.
 
 

    Sikyatki designs led to an important stylistic evolution of Nampeyo's pottery.  This form of pottery is "characterized by a clear yellow surface with elaborate decorations in brown and red" (Collins 13).  It is the original form of Hopi pottery created by the first Indians who lived on the First Mesa.
    Nampeyo was the only potter producing the original style of Hopi pottery, which had become very popular with the traders.  Clay was brought in from the First Mesa for Nampeyo, since she refused to use any other than the traditional types of clay used by her ancestors.  After a few years her skill had improved dramatically and she was producing high quality work.  The traders were first introduced to Nampeyo and her pottery through her brother.  Tom Polacca had many influential friends from outside the reservation, due to his ability to speak English.  When his friends came to visit they recognized the unique and expert talent of Nampeyo and her reputation spread quickly by word of mouth to other people.  Her pottery became "known as the finest pottery on the mesa" (Kramer 59).  She was not a sales person for her art, but rather had to be sought out.  Knowledgeable traders stopped to admire and purchase the works of Nampeyo.
    Other women of the village became jealous of Nampeyo's success, and stopped producing the traditional wares to copy the Sikyatki style of pottery.  However, the traditional wares were still very popular with the Hopi people.  Moreover, the other women of the village were unable to duplicate the manufacturing process to copy the Sikyatki style successfully.  Instead, the other women produced pottery ridden with cracks, which became known as Crackle Ware.
    In addition to her stylistic leadership, Nampeyo also instructed the necessary manufacturing techniques.  "It is interesting to note that after the impact of Nampeyo's influence, Crackle Ware dissappeared" (Collins 17).  Therefore, her followers were able to produce quality pieces of pottery.
Nampeyo's originality led her to find more potsherds from the ruins, so she would be able to produce a different design on each piece of pottery.  No two pieces of her pottery were precisely the same and she never exactly copied a piece of the Sikyatki potsherds.  She was able to incorporate her unique style into the traditional designs.  "…Nampeyo was considered the best of the Hopi potters before the excavation of Sikyatki in 1895" (Collins 18).  Nampeyo's talent was such that even when her pottery was the same style of everyone else, she was still considered the best.
    Nampeyo's popularity had spread, so that she and her large family were invited to take part in the initiation of the "Hopi House," a traditional replica of a Hopi stone house, located near the Grand Canyon.  This was her first exhibition to demonstrate her pottery making skills.  Visitors were enticed to come to this new tourist attraction because Nampeyo's reputation was so widespread.  She put on demonstrations and was willing to discuss the methods of her pottery making with the many tourists.  Nampeyo's attitude was unusual because most Hopi people are unwilling to discuss their methods with outsiders, and instead would rather discuss the selling of their items.  Many of Nampeyo's pieces were sold and sent all over the world.
 
 

    After the success at the Hopi House, Nampeyo was invited to Chicago to demonstrate her skills.  She traveled to Chicago because she wanted to show the people of the East the pottery making of the Southwest.  Nampeyo went with her husband, daughter, and one of her daughter's friends.  Certain restrictions were placed on Nampeyo and her families' appearance at the exhibition:  they were to dress in native costumes, there should be an interpreter and her entourage had to perform some of the rituals of the Hopi people.  However, their hosts paid for all living and traveling expenses.
    Nampeyo was able to demonstrate the molding of her pots and the painting, but was unable to do any firing because the exhibition was held indoors.  The original methods of modeling and designing using the Sikyatki forms were always emphasized during her exhibitions.  Unlike the other Hopi potters, Nampeyo never conformed her traditional ways to please the modern society.
    Due to her diminishing eyesight, the exhibition in Chicago was Nampeyo's final display.  Nampeyo was diagnosed with trachoma, a very common infectious eye disease afflicting many poor Southwestern Indian tribes.  Her pottery making suffered and she was unable to paint the fine details, as she had been able to do previously.  In fact, her children helped with some of the fine detail work.  Her husband, Lessou, passed away during the time that Nampeyo was losing her eyesight, which further added to her isolation, since her children had already departed.
    Nampeyo's children continued her tradition of pottery making after they departed her household.  Even the grandchildren visited their famous grandmother to watch her pottery making.  Hisi, Nampeyo's great great granddaughter, still continues Nampeyo's long tradition of pottery making and continues it as a livelihood.  "My grandmother always stressed to use the traditional designs to continue the legacy of Nampeyo" (Howard 106).
    Hisi was present at an exhibition earlier this semester held on the University of Arizona campus.  She was modeling and painting different pieces of pottery.  Watching Hisi demonstrate her talent, I was inspired to imagine Nampeyo watching her mother or grandmother shape and paint their work.  The ability to create a unique and beautiful object has been passed down through several generations.  Each piece has its own individualistic meaning.  Nampeyo will always be remembered as the rejuvenator of the ancient Sikyatki style.

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Collins, John E.  Nampeyo, Hopi potter….  Northland Press:  Flagstaff, 1974.

Kramer, Barbara.  Nampeyo and Her Pottery.  University of New Mexico Press:  Albuquerque, 1996.

Nequatewa, Edmund.  "Nampeyo, Famous Hopi Potter."  Plateau - Flagstaff, Arizona 15   (1943):  40-42.