Waterbird in Hopi Overlay Silver: Field Guide to a Design Tradition
The waterbird appears in Hopi overlay silversmithing as a documented design element distinct from, and not to be confused with, the Peyote Bird symbol used within the Native American Church. This page addresses only the Hopi craft-tradition use of the waterbird design as documented in the jewelry-trade record. The Peyote Bird carries active sacred meaning for members of the Native American Church; this guide does not address that tradition.
Some symbols carry sacred meaning within living traditions. We choose to respect that. This page is deliberately limited to what the jewelry-trade record documents — nothing more.
Zuni jar band No. 20, which the potter named 'water birds' in 1924 (drawn for Bunzel by a Zuni potter). Ruth L. Bunzel, The Pueblo Potter, 1929, Plate XXIII, public domain.
From the Library: Branson, Turquoise: The Gem of the Centuries (1975)
1975 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 1975, not today.
Branson (1975) defined the Hopi overlay method:
“Hopi jewelry makers work mostly in overlay, a method employing a sheet of silver with cut out designs soldered over another sheet of silver.” — Branson (1975), p. 7
And where the emphasis falls, in Branson's (1975) reading:
“They place the emphasis of design on the silver rather than on the turquoise.” — Branson (1975), p. 7
From the Library: Wright, Hopi Silver (2003)
2003 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 2003, not today.
According to Wright (2003, p. 124), 'Waterbird, & Flute Flower' was the hallmark of one smith, Philbert Selina, indexed among plant marks with a reference to his row on p. 99. [2]
Wright (2003, p. 116) also indexed a 'Water Loon' mark, used by John Honie, among the bird marks. [2]
From the Library: Bunzel, The Pueblo Potter (1929)
1929 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 1929, not today.
Writing in 1929 about Hopi pottery of the mid-1920s, Bunzel found birds at the center of its bowl designs:
“The bowl designs used by the Hopi show the highest development of conventionalized representation, in which bird forms predominate.” — Bunzel (1929), p. 42 [3]
According to Bunzel (1929, p. 42), these Hopi bird designs had all been suggested by the designs on ancient Sikyatki pottery. [3]
According to Bunzel (1929, p. 70), Hopi potters of the mid-1920s, asked about their designs, named the earth, mountains, sky, clouds and rain, and only rarely birds, despite the obvious bird forms. [3]
According to Bunzel (1929, p. 96), the Zuni potter who drew a band of birds for her (design No. 20) named it water birds in 1924, and said potters liked to paint waterbirds because the birds live in the water, so the jar would never be empty. [3]
Hopi bowl-interior designs Nos. 2-7: birds and feather forms in the Sikyatki-revival style (drawn for Bunzel by a Hopi artist). Composite of three crops from the plate. Ruth L. Bunzel, The Pueblo Potter, 1929, Plate XXXIII, public domain.
Field Notes by Mateo James
Margaret Nickelson Wright's Hopi Silver is a record of hallmarks, not a catalogue of designs, and the waterbird turns up there as part of one smith's mark: Philbert Selina's "Waterbird, & Flute Flower," which her index files among the plant marks (Wright 2003, p. 124; his listing is on p. 99). The same index records a "Water Loon" mark used by John Honie among the bird marks (p. 116). The flute player is a separate figure mark with its own entries (p. 119). The book doesn't join the two, and it doesn't list a waterbird design category.
A note on nomenclature: Hougart's marks table lists "Peyote Bird" as a separate design category entirely — and Preston Monongye's documented mark is described in Hougart as "a peyote bird with a P between the tail and the wings." Monongye, a Hopi artist with his own directory entry, used a mark that the primary source characterizes as a peyote bird. This guide does not treat Monongye's mark on this page because that characterization belongs to the NAC tradition, not the general waterbird design tradition.
The documentary record for the waterbird as a general Hopi design element — separate from its NAC associations — is present but not extensively elaborated in available primary sources. This page reflects that limited scope honestly.
Collector's Handbook
What to look for: On Hopi silver, a waterbird can be part of a maker's hallmark as well as a design: Wright records it in Philbert Selina's mark, "Waterbird, & Flute Flower" (Wright 2003, p. 124). If a waterbird appears on the back of a piece, it's worth checking it against the hallmark index before reading it as decoration.
Critical distinction: Waterbird (Hopi overlay design) is not the same as Peyote Bird (Native American Church symbol). Collectors and dealers should not conflate these two distinct traditions. A piece with a bird mark described as a "peyote bird" in Hougart carries different context than a waterbird design in Hopi overlay.
Documentation limit: Extended text on the waterbird's specific meaning within Hopi design is outside the scope of what this guide documents. What the record confirms: a waterbird element in at least one documented Hopi hallmark (Wright 2003, pp. 99, 124). Wright lists no waterbird design category.
A note on accuracy. We strive for accuracy, and this page is continuously updated with new information from the artists, their families, and the community. Corrections welcome.
References
Hougart, Bille. Native American and Southwestern Silver Hallmarks, 5th ed. (2022).
Branson, Oscar T. Turquoise: The Gem of the Centuries. Santa Fe: Treasure Chest Publications, 1975. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 1975.
Wright, Margaret Nickelson. Hopi Silver: The History and Hallmarks of Hopi Silversmithing. Revised edition. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2003. Originally published by Northland Publishing. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 2003.
Bunzel, Ruth L. The Pueblo Potter: A Study of Creative Imagination in Primitive Art. Columbia University Contributions to Anthropology, vol. VIII. New York: Columbia University Press, 1929. Public domain (U.S. publication before 1931). Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 1929.
