Theodora Galvan Shije was a traditional potter from Zia Pueblo. As the records are so sparse, it seems she lived from 1899 to 1990. Theodora made Zia traditional pottery, generally thick and heavy jars or thick and heavy dough bowls. Everything was thick and heavy because the Zia clay and temper required it in order to have a lifetime. Her designs were also traditional Zia: roadrunner, rainbows, yucca plants and flowers, rain, clouds and weather symbols. Her designs were always in black, earth red, tan or light orange, all derived from either crushed minerals or boiled down plant juices.
Polychrome Jar
ceramic and pigment
c. 1915
Possibly Theodora Galvan Shije, Hayeina
Pueblo of Zia, New Mexico
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