Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology

This article presents an overview of the Paíipai community of Santa Catarina, Baja California, from observations made during preliminary field visits that contributed to an ongoing ceramic study. Previous ethnoarchaeological investigations were dedicated to observing the ìancestralî paddle and anvil ceramic technology, and characterizing vessels as either ìtraditionalî or ìnon-traditionalî based on how closely they resembled early (pre-contact) forms. More recent ceramic objects came to be viewed by anthropologists as ìcontemporary artî or the result of an ìevolutionî of an ancient tradition. My proposal reframes anthropological notions of time and space to account for observed elements of both continuity and change in current forms, and to merge past and present, local and global contexts. Semi-structured interviews with ceramists revealed the importance of memory in ascribing meaning to the forms they produce. Exploring the significance of recent objects for the first time meant reflecting on socioeconomic conditions in the village ? such details were overlooked by earlier archaeologists, who were primarily interested in precontact-period societies.