Large two-headed, four-armed effigy figurine,

ca. 1880

<p>Immediately following the Mexican cession of New Mexico to the United States in 1848, Anglo-­American anthropologists began working in the region, eager to learn of its rich cultural heritage. Field collectors for the great ethnographic museums of the east coast may have encouraged local Pueblo peoples to add figural ceramic forms to their repertoire of finely painted jars and bowls, objects that subsequently became very popular among tourists who started visiting Santa Fe via the rail line that was completed in 1880. The railroad also brought inspiration to local artists, who repre­sented white tourists and traveling circus performers in clay. This two-headed, four armed, bearded figure, painted in the distinctive palette of Cochiti Pueblo potters, wears tights and a bandolier, suggesting a representation of such a newcomer to the region, possibly a specific sideshow or circus performer. Such objects were bought by avid col­lectors who, seeking "authentic Indian" curios, were unknowingly acquiring Anglo caricatures. Given rich local traditions of clowning and humor, the irony was unlikely to have gone unnoticed by the Cochiti artists responsible for this work. </p>