| History | People | Places |
| Traditions | Product Catalogue | Contact Us |
| Pottery |
Burmese PotteryAbout 2000 years ago the Pyu people, a Tibeto-Burman tribe settled in the upper part of Myanmar, their first capital established in Sriksetra near present day Pyay. Around the 8th century The Pyus relocated their capital north to Halin in the region of Shwebo. The making of the pots with clay and decorations were descended from these times. The ceramic trading had been a popular and interesting deal. The Mottama harbour on the seacoast, (formerly known as Martaban) had been an important link in the ceramic pottery trade with other Southeast Asian countries. Pottery has been the earliest craft in the history of human civilization. Although pots are fragile, they can be made useful in many useful ways. Pots were used to store and cook food. They were also used as burial urns to bury gold and jewellery. The remains of some old pots used during the Pyu civilizations were discovered, giving evidences that pots had been used since then. Remains were also found in Bagan and Mrauk-U regions. Today, the main pottery works in Myanmar are situated in Nwe Nyein village near Kyauk Myaung, a river-side town near Shwebo and Twante near Yangon. |
|
Pot makingEven though plastic, steel, aluminium wares are available, hand-made pottery is still very much preferred by Myanmar and still in use in the cultural traditions. A Myanmar potters techniques of a thousand years ago are still in use today, and probably by his descendants; for it is usually a family business, handed down from one generation to the next. |
|
|
Fine
river silt is sieved and mixed with good rich earth and steeped
in water for several days. The next day is mixed and kneaded.
The potter's wheel is set in a shallow hole dug in the ground
and is turned by one hand by the potter or with one foot by
someone standing above it. The smaller pots are shaped on it and
then paddled with a wooden bat incised with designs. Big jars
are so essential to the Myanmar household and are made by the
coiling method. The base is formed first and allowed to dry out
a little so that it can bear the weight of the top and added on
afterwards. The two halves are smoothed over with final touches
added, and then allowed to dry out completely in the shade. Terracotta wares such as water and flowerpots are made the same way, but are then fired in a low-temperature kiln. While making water pots, sand is added to the clay to make the pots porous. |
 |
| For glazed ware, a creamy paste of traditional glazes is slapped on with a rag or a bunch of jute fibres and allowed to dry. The glaze is made from lava-like pebbles obtained while smelting silver from ore. These brownish pebbles are powdered as fine as possible, sifted and mixed with a little clay and binding agents like hta-m'-ye' (the gluey, milky water poured out from the rice pot while in the process of cooking). Once the glaze has been applied it is allowed to dry; sometimes-decorative motifs are painted on in different colours, then left to dry again. Glazed wares are fired at higher temperatures and take about five days. The kiln is left unopened for several days so that the pots have time to cool. |
 |
| The most famous of glazed pots must be the 'martaban jars', named after the port on the Southern coast where they were once made and exported all over Asia centuries ago. The jars are four feet high with bulbous tops and narrow bottoms left unglazed outside. The opening is about 18 inches wide. Both the top and interior are glazed thickly, in traditional dark brown verging on black. The base is usually buried in the ground for stability, and for coolness. The pots are an essential part of the traditional Myanmar household, squatting in shiny rows by a fence or under the eaves. |
 |
Copyright allthingsburmese.com