Rebecca “Amanda” Youngbird Cherokee Pottery

Updated August 25, 2026

Native American Eastern Band Cherokee blackware pottery vase by Rebecca “Amanda” Wolfe Youngbird (1890–1984), an important 20th-century Cherokee potter. The rounded vessel features a burnished dark surface with deeply incised, repeating geometric decoration resembling an interwoven basket pattern. The underside is hand-incised “Youngbird / Cherokee / N.C.” Youngbird was a self-taught Cherokee potter from the Qualla Boundary in North Carolina and is credited with helping reintroduce blackware pottery to Cherokee ceramic traditions. She developed a distinctive style incorporating hand-coiling, paddling and incised decoration and became particularly recognized for her blackware pottery. Measures approximately 3.75" tall x 4" wide. There are areas of cracking and losses to portions of the deeply incised exterior decoration, clearly visible in the photographs. Despite the condition issues, this is a particularly collectible signed example by a documented Eastern Band Cherokee artist whose work is represented in museum collections, including the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. See photos for details.

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