Prehistoric Anasazi Mimbres Bowl

Prehistoric Anasazi Mimbres black on white pottery bowl with serrated geometric elements encircling the rim, restored. Ink collection number on underside "6723." Exhibited: Decoding Mimbres Painting: Ancient Ceramics of the American Southwest, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA, May 20 - December 2, 2018. Illustrated: Berlant, Tony, and Mauer, Evan, Decoding Mimbres Painting: Ancient Ceramics of the American Southwest, Prestel Publishing, New York, in association with LACMA, 2018, p. 99, described as "Bowl with Abstraction of Datura Blossom." In the chapter "Identifying Mimbres Artists" it is suggested by the authors that "Our close examination of Mimbres ceramics has led us to conclude that a very small number of master artists in each generation painted all the finest Mimbres bowls... Given the sophistication and variety of compositions, it is clear that Mimbres artists endeavored to devise original and unusual paintings that expressed individuality and dramatic invention." Ibid. p. 97. Based on criteria further discussed in that chapter, the authors have attributed the present lot as an example of the work of "The Morphing Flower Artist." Ex. Rainbow Trader's Auction Service, Godfrey, IL, 29 May, 2013; Property from the Collection of Tony Berlant