Pottery

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Pottery in Abu Dhabi

Pottery has been practised for millennia in the United Arab Emirates, but few of its earliest forms have stood the test of time

Pottery has existed in the United Arab Emirates since the 3rd millennium BCE (3000–2000 BCE), with recovered fragments validating a high level of craftsmanship and a diversity of forms, some of which are still used today

Early potters used clay to produce a variety of containers, including vessels for preserving and transporting food. Pottery was an important aspect of the culture of these ancient civilisations.

Similar designs still in use today include the hib; an earthen pot cools drinking water in hot, dry desert conditions; the chirr or kharas, a vessel for storing dates or dried fish; and a container for storing and preserving fresh milk.

Did You Know ?

The kharous holds 90 litres of water and exemplifies the ingenuity of ancient potters. A large and technically challenging product to fire in a pottery kiln, it also stored dates and dry food, such as barley and wheat.