"Sammy Naranjo" Pueblo Blackware Pottery

Updated September 22, 2026

Signed Sammy Naranjo Santa Clara Pueblo pottery vessel featuring an exceptionally detailed combination of polished blackware, matte contrasting surfaces, carved decoration, and fine sgraffito-style incised designs. Sammy Naranjo (b. 1972) is a Santa Clara Pueblo potter known for traditional hand-coiled pottery embellished with intricate etched and carved imagery. He learned pottery making within his family and is particularly recognized for black and sienna vessels incorporating traditional Pueblo imagery and geometric designs. This substantial rounded vessel features an elaborate continuous design with highly stylized figures and animal or avian forms surrounded by bold geometric elements. Multiple decorative registers encircle the upper portion, including repeating feather-like forms, stepped motifs, triangles, and finely incised linear detailing. The contrast between the highly polished black areas and textured matte surfaces gives the composition exceptional visual depth. The underside is signed “Sammy Naranjo, Santa Clara Pueblo.” Naranjo's documented works are signed in this manner, and comparable examples feature similar blackware construction and intricate sgraffito decoration. The underside exhibits noticeable scratches and surface wear, including scratching around and through portions of the signature area. Additional light surface wear is present from previous handling and display. See photos closely for the signature, intricate carved and etched decoration, surface details, and overall condition. A striking example of contemporary Santa Clara Pueblo pottery and Native American blackware, with strong collector appeal for buyers of Pueblo pottery, Southwest Native American art, signed Indigenous pottery, sgraffito pottery, and Santa Clara ceramics.

Register & bid on this lot at Bidspirit →

More lots in this auction

• "D. Adams" Signed Owl Kachina Doll 14"
• "Hans Martin Schleeh" Mother & Child Sculpture
• Hand-Knotted Persian-Style Wool Rug
• Barack Obama Signed The Audacity of Hope 1st Ed.
• Signed Fraser “End of the Trail” Western Sculpture
• Gayle Nason “Beads of Long Ago” Original, Signed
• Pick Up Day Information
• Brenda Bredvik Original Oil Painting on Canvas

See all lots in Luxury Southwest Living, Art, Furniture, Decor →