Mimbres artisans painted bowls featuring a wide variety of subjects, including people, animals, insects, and geometric designs. Some figures are naturalistic, while others are fantastic or abstract. Many of the figures reflect the natural desert world of the Mimbres Valley in New Mexico – such as the grouse painted on this bowl. However, some bowls have images of animals that are found as far away as the Gulf of California or Pacific Ocean.

This is the only Mimbres bowl with a painted figure in our collection. I picked this object because the painted and stylized figures on Mimbres pottery offer a glimpse into the world of the ancient potters who made them and an appreciation of their sense of design and symbolism. Looking at the simple grouse on this bowl connects us to the southwestern desert landscape of 1000 years ago.
– Ed Fleming, Curator of Archaeology