Zama Pottery of Spiti Valley
Fine black clay is collected from the mountain beds of Langza village and then is mixed with water. It is then refined with the help of a local filter ‘channi’ and is kept for sometime so that the refined clay particles are settled down, marking two layers of clay and water separate. Once it is settled, water is poured out and the clay is again poured into a porous sheet where it is refined again. The clay is then collected and beaten by hand continuously to make it soft. The clay is then molded by hands with the help of simple tools made of wood, leather and stone. The desired shape is given by adding more and more layers of clay on top of the base. Once the shape is achieved, it is kept under sun for drying. Other than Zame technique, potters also use potters wheel and later fire the pots in furnace with temperature around 900 °C.
