The Versatility of Clay

Although archeologists date the world’s earliest pottery to 14,000 B.C. in China and Japan; Africans have been making pottery since about the 7th century B.C., testifying to the enduring utility of clay from which pottery is made with the skill spreading to the western coast by 400 B.C.

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A Brief History Of African Pottery

In the early ages of pottery, survival reigned and form followed function. Gradually, potters introduced aesthetics to their craft, adding colored glazes and etched designs and finally creative shapes. Pottery might be considered one of the very oldest examples of decorative art applied to utilitarian objects. North African factories could not compete with inexpensive imports of pottery from China and the Middle East; but, below the Sahara Desert, the craft continued to flourish.

In sub-Saharan Africa, pottery was generally considered women’s work, although that varied by tribe. The segregation of pottery-making by gender imbued the craft with the superstitions and cultural biases attendant upon the assigned gender. Symbolism and meaning imbued the shapes and designs of these ceramics.

Overall, with no use of a potter's wheel, clay pots were molded into the desired shape, and used mostly for cooking food or storing water.

According to All-About-African-Art.com, the central region of Africa produced pottery with a deep and lustrous finish and the Congolese people used plant-based dyes for color. The Mangbetu people mixed human and animal designs, incorporating clay shaped into beaks as spouts and handles. Potters added other materials for both functionality and beauty, including basketwork covers.

African pottery reflects the diversity of the continent’s many cultures.

The lack of a potter’s wheel affects the pottery. Traditional African pottery is fashioned through coiling and molding techniques passed down through the generations, which yields a certain consistency in design and aesthetics. According to Ceramics and Pottery Arts and Resources, “Terracotta clay is most commonly used, fired in the open, to produce pots of remarkable durability. Their pottery wares embody a refined understanding of material, process, and embellishment that conjures a deceptive simplicity.”

Although terracotta remains the most commonly used material, other clays abound on the vast continent. Clay might be mined from termite hills in Namibia, the banks and beds of streams in the western rainforests, and pits in bare earth in the more arid regions.

A Link Between Art And Earth

Both fragile and durable, African pottery comes in an amazing variety of sizes and shapes and epitomize both art and craft through the merging of aesthetics and utility. The artisans expressing imagination and utility in clay and colored glazes demonstrate the full range of sub-Saharan pottery talent.

Pots, jars, platters, candlesticks, vases, bowls, and more synthesize traditional craftsmanship and regional design influences with sublime creativity. A bird’s beak or a monkey’s tail serves as a handle or spout. Birds, sables, millipedes, and leopards perch, leap, and crawl to combine symbolic meaning with prosaic function and native beauty. The malleability of hand-formed clay allows for more fantastic shapes than a potter’s wheel without the contrived elegance.

African pottery such as featured in the offered by offers connoisseurs of ceramics a vibrant link between artistic beauty and Mother Earth.