Richard Marshall Howard, who died Jan. 2 at Christus St. Vincent Medical Center after several years of poor health, was a man of no small parts. "Dick" Howard may have been best-known for his encyclopedic knowledge of Native American pottery and artists, and his many collections. But he had other facets to his character, all polished to a notable sparkle by his keen mind and insatiable interest in life.

During his 76 years, Howard's art activities were buttressed by a fully rounded life. He was an affectionate son, brother, and uncle; a faithful friend who never forgot a name or a face; a longtime National Park Service employee and public servant; a foster parent to many troubled teens; and a mentor to countless Indian artists throughout the Southwest.

He was also, according to friends, something of a polymath. Whether you were talking about who performed in a 1934 movie or the correct use of a word, the proper appraisal of a piece of Indian pottery or finding just the right comment for an amusing situation, Howard was the ultimate congenial go-to source.

In addition, he had a sense of humor and occasion to leaven his knowledge. Santa Feans Maggie and Michael Maule, who met Howard in the 1950s when all three were young people working in the National Park Service, recalled one special occasion. In 2004, Howard gave a 50th birthday party for the first piece of Native American pottery he ever bought: a jar made by a man known as Eagle Plume at San Juan Pueblo, now Ohkay Owingeh.

The 21-year old Howard paid $2.60 for that find. It was the first in a series of purchases that eventually led to an immense and valuable collection. In 2000, The New Mexican reported that 500 of Howard's pots, many of them by San Ildefonso potter Tonita Roybal, were bought by gallery owner Nedra Matteucci for well over $1 million.

Howard was born in Chicago but went west as soon as he could, said his sister Judy Gillen. "I think Dick left about seven minutes after he graduated from high school. He went to the University of Colorado at Boulder, and that's where he fell in love with the Southwest. He worked for years for the Park Service; he was all over. As an archaeologist, he actually discovered a church ruin at Gran Quivira.

"When he told my parents that he spent $7.50 on his first Maria (Martinez) pot, they almost hit the ceiling and went through it. They said, 'How could you waste money on that stuff?' He's laughed at them ever since."

Maggie Maule recalled meeting Howard when they both started work at Mesa Verde on the same day in 1959. "My husband was an archaeologist, as was Dick," she said. "I worked for the Mesa Verde Museum Association.

"We were all young; we all had just graduated from college. Dick was a wonderful guy. He had a wonderful sense of humor. He and I were at the front desk together. People would come in ask questions like, 'How many undiscovered ruins are there?' We decided that each of us would say, 'Eleven.' People would come back in (after touring the park) with these very puzzled looks on their faces."

After that first summer and college, Howard's National Park Service tenure included a number of years at Gran Quivira (now a part of Salinas National Monument) and Canyon de Chelly, the Maules said. He then worked in San Francisco as a museum curator in a central NPS design office. From there, he returned to Mesa Verde and then was assigned to Casa Grande National Monument in Arizona. He retired from that post to Santa Fe in 1986.

"Dick was not pleased to be transferred away from Mesa Verde to Casa Grande," Maggie Maule noted, "where he spent about the last 15 years of his NPS career. But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It was there that his career as an Indian Art dealer blossomed. He once told us that his NPS salary paid for his rent, his food, the essentials, but that Indian art was on different level.

"He said that if he was walking down the street in Tucson and saw a $10,000 pot that he wanted, he would go back home and find two $5,000 pots to sell. We understand that during this time, he won court approval for a federal employee to do business as an art dealer."

Howard stayed vital and busy and traveled frequently until he had a stroke six years ago, said his friend Nancy Benkof.

"As a dealer in Native American pottery, he supported artists from every pueblo in New Mexico, practically. He was a person they would come to when they needed something purchased, when they needed to get through a feast day or a wedding.

"Dick had a huge collection," she said. "You could barely walk into his house, what with his collections of pottery, early Santa Fe Indian School paintings, New Mexican furniture, contemporary Hispanic art — he loved Contemporary Spanish Market each year — and souvenirs of his world travel during the last 15 years."

Besides his government career and his intensive work as an art dealer and collector, Howard was a longtime member of the Southwest Association for Indian Arts board and served for a term as its chairman. He chaired SWAIA's Indian Market judging committee for six years and received a 2007 Povika Award from the organization.

"I first met Dick through SWAIA, when I was a young pup, when I first judged," said Bruce Bernstein, SWAIA's executive director and a former director of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture. "He was one of the giants in the room. He was awe-inspiring in so many different ways.

"And then I worked with Dick through the '90s in particular, when I was head judge for several years. Dick was always very, very involved in setting the standards and rules for market."

Unlike some collectors who become rigid, Howard was always interested in new work and contemporary pottery as well as historic pieces, Bernstein said. And he was a close friend and adviser to many of the most notable artists — especially his contemporary Robert Tenorio of Santo Domingo Pueblo.

"Last year when I went out to Santo Domingo for feast day, I visited with Dick just before," Bernstein recalled. "He'd been sick again, he could just whisper, but we spent a couple of hours talking at his house. I told him I hoped he'd get well and be out there, and he said he would try.

"He didn't make it. But Robert and the family, after the feast, took the feast day to Dick's house. That was a wonderful testament to the kind of guy he was."

Howard served the community in less public ways too, the Maules said — especially as a foster parent for many years. "He was very proud to be presented the Foster Parent of the Year award for New Mexico a few years ago," Maggie Maule said.

Howard is survived by his brother, Robert Howard; his sister, Judy Howard Gillen and her husband; nieces and nephews; and countless friends. Cremation has taken place. A public celebration of Howard's life will be announced at a later date.

Contact Craig Smith at 505-986-3038, csmith@sfnewmexican.com.