A'ali Pottery

Pottery is one of the most important traditional crafts in Bahrain. Bahrainis believe that the art of pottery making began here more than 4,000 year ago, when the country was known as Dilmun. A'ali is known as the center of the craft, and at one time, most of the families in the town made their living as potters. Now there are only 7 families who are still in the pottery business, but the techniques and tools they use remain practically unchanged, as they are handed down generation to generation.
I loved how the pottery was intricate and simple at the same time. Clean lines, neutral color, each one unique.

Here I am trying my hand at throwing a pot. They still use the foot-powered wheel, and I think I got the easy job, since the man helping me was doing all of the work to keep the wheel moving. I made one small pot (the one on the very right, in a row by itself), and stood up to leave, and the potter pinched off another piece of clay and motioned that he wanted me to try again. After #2, I again stood up to go, and he pinched off some more clay and motioned me back. I really was done after pot #3--a girl can only have so much potting fun in one day, especially when she is out of shape and has to squat for long periods of time.

I would have liked to see them make this one.

After much deliberation, I finally decided on a piece to purchase. I bought one of the vases on the bottom shelf on the left. It is actually open on the top and on the bottom, so I figure it would look nice with a candle in it.