I started transcribing my notes from my visit with Patrick. Eventually these notes plus any additional research information will be placed into the folder of the artifact. I will say that a seed was planted by Patrick in me to learn more about the pottery and about the different Indians who made the beautiful pots that are housed at the museum.

A demonstration on safe handling was presented this week. Safe handling is essential to maintaining the integrity of an object. All objects are to be handled with the care and the respect they deserve. Minimized movement and handling of the object is imperative.

As a non-traditional student at Adams State I am blessed to be traveling on this road of higher education. I will say that icing on the cake for me is sharing my journey with my family, especially my grandson, Francisco. He is always eager to know what I am learning and he enjoyed hearing about the pottery at the museum. I know that the next time he visits a museum he will look at the artifacts with different eyes.

My journey as intern for the Salazar Rio Grande del Norte Center began the week of August the 15^th. The morning started off with an introduction and a basic overview of the Luther Bean Museum.

The highlight of the week was a visit by Patrick Ortiz, a graduate student at the University of Colorado who will be receiving his M.A. in Archaeology. I had the privilege of learning from Patrick valuable information on the pottery the museum has acquired throughout the years. The information ranged from what Indian tribe made the pottery based on its style and decoration, the use of the word “olla” (Spanish for “pots”), and what time period the pottery could have been made.

A few things that I learned about the decoration of the pottery:

“The Line Break” a.k.a. “The Spirit Break” are found on many pots. There are framing lines and path lines are interrupted by a small gap called the spirit break, ceremonial break, or simply the line break. This feature has occurred on Pueblo pottery for nearly a thousand years. It is a major element in prehistoric Hopi pottery.

Some key elements in the decorations of the pottery represent other elements of nature such as turkey feathers=clouds, lighting bolts=rain, and swirls=clouds. The heart line is a painted arrow leading from the mouth into the chest of an animal motif. The heart line is said to represent life itself. It is inspired by the spiritual connection between a deer and the hunter.

I end my week excited about my journey as an intern! A memory that came to mind for me was when I was young and I often wondered about the people who worked behind the scenes in a museum and the jobs they performed, now I get to experience this life for myself.