August 24, 2010

One of the rarest types of Native American pottery is the head pot, which is found almost exclusively in northeast Arkansas and the bootheel of Missouri. Head pots are unique in that the entire one-piece vessels are molded into the shape of a human head. As of 2009, only 138 such pots, created by Native Americans from the Late Mississippian Period (1400 to 1700), have been discovered. Examples like the one shown here can be seen at the Hampson Archeological Museum State Park in Wilson (Mississippi County).