What is Pottery?

pottery

Pottery is a very old handicraft, and it has always been an essential part of human civilization. It has been used for both utilitarian and artistic purposes throughout history, from the earliest baskets to today’s ceramic tableware. Pottery can be dated using several features such as shape, drawing patterns and decorative styles to give an indication of the cultural development of a society. It can also be used to date archaeological sites where written records are unavailable.

The earliest pottery items were made by hand, either by constructing coils of clay, combining flat slabs or pinching solid balls of clay. Some potters still use this method, allowing them to create one-of-a-kind works of art, rather than mass-produced objects. More recent developments have seen the introduction of a potter’s wheel and the process of throwing. In this, a solid ball of clay is rotated while the potter gently presses, shapes and pulls it to form a hollow vessel. This requires skill and experience to achieve results of a high standard.

Firing is the most important element of pottery making, and it can change many physical, chemical and mineralogical properties of the body. For example, porcelain is much stronger and more translucent than earthenware due to the sintering of coarser particles in its body at higher firing temperatures.

Some pottery items need a glaze, which can be painted on or etched into the surface of the clay. Glazes can be applied in several ways, including brushing, spraying and dip-glazing. The most common types of glazes are coloured oxides, silicates and frits. The colour of a glaze is often determined by its firing temperature. For example, celadons and Oriental red glazes are coloured by the application of a reduction atmosphere in the kiln.

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