© 2023 Dr Margaret Sheppard

Pottery

This is a fairly typical local pottery. A group of families dig the clay where they live near Tissamaharama, and  “throw” these pots and fashion pottery lamps. These are all objects that are used in pujah offerings and their pottery is located on a Pilgrim Route to Kataragama via Tissamaharama and Kirinda. Apart from direct sales they also sell local shops are their customers.

Some finished pottery products

Their workshop - well ventilated and built of mud brick and coconut thatch. Here they keep the hand operated potters’ wheel

And the moist balls of clay waiting to be worked into the pots and lamps etc they make. These are then allowed to dry before being placed in their kiln which is outside and fuelled with wood, dried dung and rice straw.

Roadside stalls selling locally made decorative pots

Pottery parts for mud stoves

These are inserted into the mud stove to supports pots, flues etc.