Gila Butte Red-on-buff is a type of Hohokam Buff Ware found primarily in the middle Gila River Valley, into the lower Salt River Valley, north to the Tonto Basin, and south as far as Hodge Ruin in the Tucson Basin (Meghann M. Vance 2024 - NAU American Southwest Virtual Museum). 

According to Oppelt (2007:124), “This is another paddle and anvil type, fired in an oxidizing atmosphere. The temper is composed of medium amounts of fine to medium quartz sand and mica from crushed schistose rock. The surface color is tan, yellow-white to light brown. Fire clouds are common causing a mottled color. The surface is usually smoothed and occasionally slipped with a washy slip. Incising is common (85%) on Gila Butte and is usually narrow, shallow, irregular and overlapping. The forms are bowls with a flared rim, globular jars, scoops, plates and effigies. The fugitive paint was applied after incising. Banded layouts are common. Frequent elements are interlocking scrolls and hachure in secondary spaces. Designs are mostly curvilinear with some hatching. Small elements, particularly flying birds, and life forms are present, but less than in Santa Cruz Red-on-buff. Multiple trailing lines characteristically appear on bowl exteriors. This type has complex designs layouts. The design layouts may be quartered, offset quartered, negative quartered, transverse banded or banded. The hatching is sloppy with lines bleeding together. Keys and opposed, interlocking scrolls (solid or hatched) are common. Life forms are frequently used. Designs resemble those on Santa Cruz Red-on-buff. This type is most abundant in the Gila Basin, also found north to the Tonto Basin and south as far as the Hodges Ruin.”

More information provided by NAU American Southwest Virtual Museum:

Gila Butte Red-on-buff is a type of Hohokam Buff Ware found primarily in the middle Gila River Valley, into the lower Salt River Valley, north to the Tonto Basin, and south as far as Hodge Ruin in the Tucson Basin.

Archaeological Culture: Hohokam

Date Range: ca. A.D. 750-850.

Construction: By paddle and anvil.

Firing: In a neutral to oxidizing atmosphere; fireclouds common.

Temper: Course-grained mica schist and quartz; calcium carbonate inclusions.
 
Surface Finish: Muscovite mica is plainly visible on vessel surfaces; slipped and polished; sometimes lightly incised; sometimes porous.

Paste Color: Gray (early); surface color typically light brown, gray-brown, gray, or orange, and less commonly tan, yellow-white, or white.

Forms: Bowls with flaring rim, jars, scoops, plates, censers, effigies. Late Gila Butte vessel forms include globular jars with short flared rims; flare-rim bowls with shallow, flat bottoms; and outcurved bowls with shallow, flat bottoms.

Decoration:

• Paint: Bright red, dull red, or purplish red.


• Pigments: Iron oxide mineral paint.


• Design: Capped fringe; design ticking; pendant dash motif; keys and flying birds; life-forms and life-form borders; all-over layouts with small elements spiraling from bowl centers and around vessels in parallel bands; full-field negative design without hachure-fill; interlocking scrolls also common; multiple trailing lines on bowl exteriors. Early Gila Butte Red-on-buff has hachured pendant triangles of other full-field designs on exterior bowl surfaces, large solids, and thick serrated lines; fringed curvilinear scrolls, crenulated lines, free-floating fringe, quail, and other life forms, slanted railroad tie hachure, and all-over, spiraling, small element designs are late.


• Incising: Shallow incising common; discontinuous; lines overlap and resemble scratches rather than grooves.

Key Traits: Scrolls with pronounced serrated edges; life forms with hatch-filled bodies; shallow incising; keys; tick-marked rims; trailing line spacing <3 cm at rim.

Comparisons: Earlier types are denser, lacking pores, and later types are generally more porous. Gila Butte Red-on-buff lacks the complex hachure-filled designs and deep, regular incising common to earlier types. Santa Cruz Red-on-buff designs also spiral, but small elements are more frequent than on Gila Butte vessels, and incising is rare. Hachure-fill is also essentially absent in Santa Cruz vessels, as are life-form borders.

Oppelt (2007:124): Gila Butte Red-on-buff (AD 750-850) This is another paddle and anvil type, fired in an oxidizing atmosphere. The temper is composed of medium amounts of fine to medium quartz sand and mica from crushed schistose rock. The surface color is tan, yellow-white to light brown. Fire clouds are common causing a mottled color. The surface is usually smoothed and occasionally slipped with a washy slip. Incising is common (85%) on Gila Butte and is usually narrow, shallow, irregular and overlapping. The forms are bowls with a flared rim, globular jars, scoops, plates and effigies. The fugitive paint was applied after incising. Banded layouts are common. Frequent elements are interlocking scrolls and hachure in secondary spaces. Designs are mostly curvilinear with some hatching. Small elements, particularly flying birds, and life forms are present, but less than in Santa Cruz Red-on-buff. Multiple trailing lines characteristically appear on bowl exteriors. This type has complex designs layouts. The design layouts may be quartered, offset quartered, negative quartered, transverse banded or banded. The hatching is sloppy with lines bleeding together. Keys and opposed, interlocking scrolls (solid or hatched) are common. Life forms are frequently used. Designs resemble those on Santa Cruz Red-on-buff. This type is most abundant in the Gila Basin, also found north to the Tonto Basin and south as far as the Hodges Ruin.