Field Museum

History Colorado

As you observe the pottery items in this slideshow, explore the evolving role of pottery in Chinese culture and global trade networks throughout the history of China. Use disciplinary lenses and refer to object information and sources in the Additional Materials to conduct research about the significance of each of these pottery items. 

Pottery in China

A tapestry created by Emperor Qianlong to express his concern for people suffering famine and homelessness from floods in China.

How do we know about the past?

Explore the types of pottery in the slideshow below. What can the shape and certain features tell us about how they were used or why they were created? 

Ancestral Puebloan Pottery

Dozens of languages emerged throughout Chinese history. Evaluate the use of language on objects from across Chinese history and examine the role writing can play across time and context.

Changing Language in China

Pueblo people have been making pottery in the Southwest United States for hundreds of years. We can learn a lot from the traditions and knowledge that have been passed down from generation to generation.

Ways of Knowing Part 2 - Ancestors

In this activity, learn about five disciplinary lenses and how they can be applied to explore objects from the past. 

A tool: Using Disciplinary Lenses

Ways of Knowing Part 1 - Tree Rings

Use this annotation activity to collect answer to questions from one of the five disciplinary lenses introduced in the last activity. You will choose just one object from the pottery slideshows to apply disciplinary lenses, and compare your findings with classmates who have selected an alternative lens. 

Applying Disciplinary Lenses

Resource Kit Overview

Explore some of the ways we can know about the past. Practice and compare the many disciplinary lenses we can use to learn about the past while exploring the form, function, continuity and change of objects from across history.


Additional Resource for Using Disciplinary Lenses: 

Additional Information about Colorado's Pueblo People:

Rocky Mountain PBS Colorado Experience: Living West, Water

Colorado Encyclopedia Article on Mesa Verde National Park 

 Ancestral Puebloans of the Four Corners Region

Exploring Ways of Knowing

World History

Social Studies

It is likely that bowls in prehistoric times were used as they are today: larger bowl are useful for mixing and preparing batches of food, and smaller bowls are convenient for individual servings. However, it is possible that multiple family members all served themselves out of a shared bowl. 

Mesa Verde black on white bowl.  Band design parallel to rim, wide framing line at top and bottom, repetitive design between framing lines, rim ticks

Bowl, Ancestral Puebloan

This mug was used for drinking and matches a typical design for mugs. McElmo Black on White

Mug, Ancestral Puebloan

Some pots were used for cooking. Cooking in pottery vessels that were placed directly in a fire or on support stones within a hearth was more efficient than the previous method of cooking, which involved dropping hot stones into liquid within baskets lined with waterproof pitch.

This cooking jar would have been placed over or in a fire to heat up contents.  The jar has burn marks on the outside from flames and many repairs, meaning it was used often.

Cooking Jar, Mesa Verde

Potters also fashioned dippers, probably to perform tasks such as dipping water from shallow pools into water jars, dipping stew or maize gruel from a cooking jar into a serving bowl, or transferring ingredients from storage vessels to a mixing bowl. 

Ladle handle with diamond cross hatchures. Ladle bowl with rim ticks, pendant dots, and hatchures.

Ladle, Mesa Verde Black on White

Other pots, called ollas, were used to transport and store water from a nearby water source, possibly a spring. Among Pueblo peoples in historic times, older girls or young women carried water from the water source to the pueblo

This is a large storage jar with concave base. Red band above exterior base and at rim into interior neck. Exterior design is red and black over white sllip. Double framing lines at neck, above shoulder, and above base band. Two bands of design. Upper band has triangle and leaf pendent to framing line with with bird's eye and feathers above shoulder. Lower band has scallops pendent to shoulder line and feather and leaf design above bottom framing line.

Olla, Red and Black on White

Seed jars were probably used to store dry foods of various types, possibly wild seeds, berries, acorns, maize kernels, squash seeds, or medicinal herbs. 

Seed jar used for storing seeds and other foodstuffs.  The jar has a spruce tree design and may have come from Spruce Tree House in Mesa Verde.

Seed Jar, Ancestral Puebloan

The uses of unusual and special forms are unknown, but might have been associated with rituals or ceremonies.

Jar shaped like an animal.  Fawn shaped jar lying nose to tail. Jar is small mouthed with handle to tail. Jar mouth has 3 broad lines. Handle has back to back double saw teeth with a negative circle containing interlocking hooks. Fawn - 3 lines of dots top of head to nose tip. Raised ears, incised mouth and nostrils. Black from outside ear to mouth line. 4 broad line rectangular scrolls cover body.  Late Mancos-Early McElmo style

Resource Kits

Object Library

Museums

Exploring Ways of Knowing

Ancestral Puebloan Pottery

Background Knowledge

Bowl