The Chichilticalli Trail Part IV – The Map
In my previous post I discussed the passage of the main body of the expedition and the various narratives we have of their passage. Now I will attempt to put together all the information from the all the various sources into one composite itinerary for this leg of the journey. Then I will overlay that […]
The Chichilticalli Trail Part III – The Expedition
In my previous post I discussed the passage of Cabeza de Vaca, Marcos de Niza and Melchor Díaz, now let’s examine the passage of the main body of the expedition. Itinerery Coronado left the Valley of Hearts on or around May 31 (arrived on May 26, rested 4 days) and travelled the 80 leagues to […]
The Chichilticalli Trail Part II – The Pathfinders
Read part I here While everyone likes to point out that Coronado was following established trade routes, it is not mentioned often enough who chose the route. The route Coronado followed was the same as that traversed by Fray Marcos de Niza the year before, and to a large extent, the same as that followed […]
Natural Pottery Paint Colors
A rainbow of colors are available to the primitive potter from natural sources. But what minerals to use in which type of firing to achieve what color can be confusing and overwhelming. In the following article I have broken it down to the basic elements. Paint information below is sorted by color and by mineral […]
Primitive Pottery Mug Workshop
Mugs will be formed using the traditional coil and scrape method, and decorated using natural, non-toxic clays and paints. The climax of this workshop will be an outdoor, open pottery firing on the last day. March 24 – 26, 2022, Fort Lowell Park, Tucson, Arizona
Primitive Pottery Supply List
Getting started in pottery can be expensive and daunting. Even primitive pottery, which does not require expensive equipment like pottery wheels or electric kilns, can be challenging for a newcomer. Where, for example, can a person buy a puki? Or what can I use for black paint? This page offers a quick, easy list of […]
How to Get Into Pottery Cheap
Pottery or ceramics is sometimes listed among the more expensive hobbies to get started in. To make modern pottery you need many things… You need to buy materials like Clay Glazes You need different tools like Pottery wheels Bats Slab rollers And you need to fire every pot twice which involves Fees to use someone […]
Tempering Pottery Clay
Temper is non-plastic material that is added to clay to keep it from cracking when it dries. It is most often sand, ground stone or ground fired ceramics but historically a wide range of materials have been used for temper.
Clay & Pigment Collecting Expeditions
Come out on a weekend tour to find and collect wild clay and pigment minerals around southeastern Arizona. These are outdoor, socially distanced tours in which you drive your own vehicle. On the second Saturday of every month you can join me as I explore for native clay and minerals in southern Arizona. Each month […]
Ancient Pottery Challenge
These are the pots that were shown in my video called “10 Coil Pot Ideas From the Ancient Southwest“. In that video I showed these pots as examples of ancient pottery forms that would be challenging to recreate. Please give them a try yourself and afterward take a photo and upload to Instagram with the […]
Public Pottery Firing Event
Come join us on October 25 at the ancient ruins of Chihuichi for a pottery firing and potters get-together. Many pottery events have been canceled this year in including the Southwest Kiln Conference. So I am opening up the last day of my pottery workshop to the public to come out and fire with us […]
