© 1994 - Tara Prindle
unless otherwise cited.
Scenes from the Eastern Woodlands
A Virtual Tour ~ Circa 1550
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Making our pots ... you will see how we make our clay vessels. Yesterday we went to the riverbank and we dug some clay from the old lake deposits that the river cuts through. We spent all afternoon taking out any small pebbles or pieces of sticks or other impurities that were in it. This clay is very fine, so we had to mix the clay with some crushed shell and some sand to help it withstand the temperature changes of the fire that makes the clay as hard as stone. Today we began to make the pots, so first we kneaded it to make sure all the air bubbles are out. The older girl on the right is rolling out coils on the mat in front of her, and she spirals each new coil onto the rim of the pot, joining them securely, one on top of the last until the pot is high enough and the right shape. The round bottomed pot sits in a small hole dug into the ground, so that the pot can sit upright and be easily worked on. The older woman's pot has dried to leather hardness, and she adds the designs of her family and people around the rim and collar of the pot with various tools like scallop shells, toothed combs, and even her fingernail. The women in the background are piling the hardwood around pots which have dried for several weeks and are ready to be fired in a shallow hearth. |
Scenes available as Fine Art Note Cards |
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Text and Graphics
© 1994 - Tara Prindle unless otherwise cited. |