Handmade with local clay and pit fired for roughly an hour. Every piece features different markings. Size and finish varies, due to process. Each piece will be cured with cal, ready to use. When not in use, leave on stovetop as a beautiful display or transfer to counter and pile it with fruits or vegetables.
Handmade in the Valles Centrales of Oaxaca, Mexico by a master artisan woman who comes from a family of women who have been producing pottery for over three generations.
Both utilitarian and traditional art piece, barro rojo pottery can be found in a variety of areas – from outdoor food vendors to elegant restaurant tables. It is often what comals are made out of locally in Oaxaca. Comals are used to cook tortillas, and are generally coated with water and lime, so that the corn doesn’t stick. You can also cook other things like eggs, chilis and so on on this surface, but with practice. Some homes throughout Mexico do not have a stove or oven, as all cooking is done over a fire and on a comal.
The clay is sourced from local agricultural fields, dried in the sun, smashed into dust, sifted until clean, then mixed with sand and water. This mixture is kneaded like dough, in order to get the air pockets out. After this, the clay is ready to use.
The vessels are shaped by hand, and then made on a simple wheel that is comprised of a stone with a small board on top, as it has been in their village for hundreds of years. The finishes and smooth texture are added through the use of corn husks, oil cloth, stones and coconut shells.
The pottery is pit fired for roughly one hour to arrive at the ideal hue. The pit fire consists of carefully stacked pottery pieces. Very small pieces usually go inside of larger ones, so that they don’t get lost during the process. The pit fire is then built underneath, inside and around the pieces from wood, dried grasses and agave hearts, along with other elements. A sheet of metal is placed overtop, and large pieces of old, broken pottery are placed around the extremities, in order to keep the heat in. The fire is lit, and is regularly fed for over an hour. This is hot, intensive work.
Typically, these sisters leave their pit fire to burn out overnight, then they pull the pieces from the cooled ash the next day. They’re rinsed in water, dried, then vigorously burnished with stones to encourage sheen and for the pieces to be a little less porous. That said, these pieces are made from unglazed pottery, and with this, greasy items will stain the pieces, water will filter, as they are still porous, and the piece will smell like earth when it’s being washed. This is natural as the piece is handmade with earth.
These are also safe for oven, gas range, food service and are 100% lead-free. Like all of the pieces from our handmade collections, these pieces vary slightly in size, hue, shape and some will feature burn marks due to the pit fire process, part of it's unique beauty.
