Vintage Pueblo Pottery Olla Ornaments by Susan Weber

If you've been to Santa Fe, you just may have shopped at Susan's Christmas Shop right off the Plaza. Established in 1978 by Susan Weber, the teeny store is a Santa Fe institution packed full of original holiday ornaments and decor. 

Native American art dealer Martha Struever loved Susan's Christmas Shop. She acquired these bread dough renditions of different New Mexico Pueblo pottery ollas there. Each olla was actually handmade by Susan Weber herself over different years.  I can just imagine Marti Struever's excitement each time she purchased one of these olla ornaments. 

They're being sold as a set now. All together there are four wonderful ornaments depicting the following pottery:

1. A 1997 handpainted polychrome bread dough jar from Zia Pueblo
2. A 2001 handpainted polychrome bread dough jar from Santo Domingo Pueblo
3. A 1997 handpainted polychrome bread dough jar from San Ildefonso Pueblo that is a replica of a pottery piece by Maria and Julian. 
4. A 2001 handpainted polychrome bread dough jar from Zia Pueblo painted with a bird. (This one is my very favorite!)

The charming olla ornaments are about 1 1/2" tall give or take. Each is signed and dated on the back. You'll notice that just like the real thing, one of the Zia jars and the Maria and Julian jar have stable cracks. 

These are very rare. In fact, you're not likely to find another set. They're such fantastic New Mexico objects if you really think about it - Christmas ornaments replicating pottery from 3 different New Mexico Pueblos created by a woman whose little Christmas shop is a beloved part of Santa Fe and collected by one of Santa Fe's most renowned Native American art dealers. Wow!