Common name: Calabash; Bottle Gourd; Long Melon; Opo Squash

Scientific name: Lagenaria siceraria

Description: Bottle gourds grow in a variety of shapes and sizes. The leaves are large and broad, flowers are white to yellow, and the mature gourds are typically shades of green.

Uses: Often carved into bowls/cups,dippers,spoons, or masks - by Acoma, Apache, Cochiti, Havasupai, Hopi, Keres, Mohave, Navajo, Papago, Pima, and Yuma). Predominantly used as a container or utensil, however, also used for ceremonial/ritual purposes (as a trumpet and/or rattle).

Author

Kimberley A. Ryan, Northern Arizona University Anthropology Laboratories

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