Pottery type
Sacaton Red-on-Buff Pottery
Sacaton Red-on-Buff950 - 1150 A.D.Hohokam PotteryKey facts
- Age
- 950 - 1150 A.D.
- Cultural period
- Hohokam Pottery
- Material
- Buff-firing clay with fine sand temper. Surfaces are smoothed to lightly polished. Red paint is iron-oxide based, applied before firing.
Description
Fine buff ware with thick red painted designs including large scrolls, nested chevrons, stepped triangles, and panel-based motifs. Known for bold, well-organized compositions and a shift toward more formalized geometric arrangements. Bowl interiors often feature strong framing lines with repeating motifs; jars display vertical or diagonal banding.
Size
Bowls typically 20–34 cm across and 10–20 cm deep. Jars range from 25–45 cm tall. Many Sacaton bowls are deeper than earlier red-on-buff varieties.
Distribution
Most common in the Phoenix Basin (Salt River Valley and Gila River Basin), with significant spread into the lower Verde, Tonto Basin, and northern Hohokam frontier.
Mainly found in
Additional information
Sacaton Red-on-Buff marks the peak of Hohokam Colonial period ceramic production. It is highly diagnostic and forms the basis of chronological frameworks for the Phoenix Basin.