Another art that women do is making pottery. Pottery is traditionally made by hand, without
the use of a potter’s wheel.
Woman building pot, ca. 1978
There is a long history of pottery making among the Igbo people.
Below is a large vessel that was excavated at Igbo-Ukwu; it dates as
far back as the 10th century A.D.
The pot has massive handles, a decorative “combed” pattern, and designs
in relief of snakes, a ram’s head, and a chameleon.
Archaeologists tend to believe that such a large and decorated pot would
have been used for ceremonial or sacred purposes.
Pot excavated at Igbo-Ukwu, 40.6
cm
In Igbo culture, pots can be made for utilitarian or ceremonial
use. In recent years, manufactured plastic
and metal containers have largely replaced the utilitarian pottery.
Most pottery now is made either for tourists or for ceremonial purposes. The most elaborately decorated pottery is kept for ceremonial use.
Igbo potters still use “combed” textures, as shown below:
Detail of pot texture