Pottery in the Indian subcontinent has an ancient history and is one of the most tangible and iconic elements of regional art. Evidence of pottery has been found in the early settlements of Mehrgarh from the Indus Valley Civilisation. Today, it is a cultural art that is still practiced extensively in India and Pakistan.
Today, pottery thrives as an art form in India, and it is slowly gaining awareness as a functional items as well. Various platforms, including potters' markets and online pottery boutiques such as Saundhi Mitti have contributed to this trend.
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Wilhelm Rau (1900) has examined the references to pottery in Vedic texts like the Black Yajur Veda and the Taittiriya Samhita. According to his study, Vedic pottery is for example hand-made and unpainted. According to Kuzmina (1983), Vedic pottery that matches Willhelm's Rau description cannot be found in Asia Minor and Central Asia, though the pottery of Andronovo is similar in some respects.[1]
The tradition of pottery-making in India is very old. For thousands of years pottery has been an important form of expression. Pottery is claimed to be the most sensual of all arts. India has a great tradition of pottery making. The real beginning of Indian pottery began with the Indus Valley Civilization. There is proof of pottery being constructed in two ways, handmade and wheel-made. There are more than a million potters in India. These potters are claimed to be wonderful masters of their trade.[2]
According to remains extracted from the Indus Valley Civilisation, Jean-François Jarrige has noted that there is a continuity between pottery of the third millennium Baluchistan and second millennium Pirak.[3]
Over time India's simple style of molding clay went into an evolution. A number of distinct styles emerged from this simple style. Some of the most popular forms of pottery include unglazed pottery, glazed pottery, terracotta, and papier-mache.[4]
This is the oldest form of pottery practiced in India. There are three types of unglazed pottery. First is paper thin pottery, biscuit-colored pottery decorated with incised patterns. Next is the scrafito technique; the pot is polished and painted with red and white slips along with intricate patterns. The third is polished pottery; this type of pottery is strong and deeply incised, and has stylized patterns of arabesques.[5]
This era of pottery began in the 12th century AD. This type of pottery contains a white background and has blue and green patterns. Glazed pottery is only practiced in selected regions of the country.[6]
A style of pottery wherein women prepare clay figures to propitiate their gods and goddesses, during festivals. In Moela deities are created with molded clay on a flat surface. They are then fired and painted in bright colors. Other parts of India use this style to make figures like horses with riders, and other votives.[7]
This type of pottery is made from paper pulp, which is coarsely mashed and mixed with copper sulphate and rice-flour paste. It is then shaped by covering the mould with a thin paper and then applying layers of the mixture. The designers then sketch designs on them and polish the pottery with bright colors. A touch of gold is always found on papier-mache products. The gold represents its roots to the Persian design.[8]
Step One: First you need to obtain and prepare the clay. Once the clay is dug up it is then stored in a dry place. The clay is prepared by adding water to obtain a moistened, sticky texture.[9]
Step Two: The clay is passed through a machine called a pug mill. This improves the consistency and texture of the clay. Traditionally the process was called dancing the clay.[10]
Dancing The Clay: The clay is thrown on the ground and red sand is added to it. The men then would walk up and down the clay mixing the sand and clay with their feet. This was done until the clay had a smooth and elastic consistency.[11]
Step Three: (Wedging The Clay) The clay is kneaded by hand on a board and then rolled into a ball.[12]
Step Four: (Throwing A Pot) This term is used for molding the clay into pottery on the potter's wheel. The clay is centered on the wheel and the potter works the clay vertically up and down with their hands. Some pots are made directly on the wheel while others are made in parts of the wheel and then assembled afterwards.[13]
Step Five: (Drying) Pots are then set aside to air dry. Some pots are placed in the shade on shelves while others are placed directly in the sun.[14]
Step Six: (Carving) Designs are now carved into the pottery or etched on the surface with any sharp pointy object or material that is available to them. The carving is done while the clay is only leather dry. After the designs are made the pottery is then set aside to finish the drying process.[15]
Step Seven: (Baking) The pots are now baked/fired in a kiln or oven. This process can either be done in an electrical oven or a traditional dirt oven. This process removes excess water from the pottery, and as a result the clay hardens. Baking also changes the color of the clay.[16]
Some of India's pottery has been recovered by divers from Nanhai Marine Archaeology as they evacuate shipwrecks in the South China Sea. This sea was the main shipping route linking China to India from the 14th to the 19th century. When a shipwreck is found, the researchers recover the artifacts and document each piece. During this they also search for the old kilns where the pottery was once made. The national museum of Malaysia is given all the unique artifacts along with thirty percent of all other recovered items. Nanhai Marine Archaeology is then permitted to sell their portion of the recovered artifacts in order to finance future projects.[17]