Rachel Werling on sat 16 sep 06
The Cannibal Hot Tub/A potter's tales from Mexico #1=0A=0ADear Potters,=0A=
=0A=0A =0A =0A=0AI am going to start subjecting the list to a series of=0As=
tories taken from my adventures working among traditional potters in Mexico=
.=0ASome of these are re-runs that I sent to the list some 6 years ago, so =
you old=0Atimers will recognize them, kind of like watching Gillagan=E2=80=
=99s Island again. For=0Aothers I hope they are enjoyable new discoveries!=
=0A=0A=0A =0A =0A=0AThe Cannibal Hot Tub=0A=0A =0A =0A=0A In Oaxaca,=
=0AMexico the biggest pots come from the potters who work in Ixtaltepec dow=
n in=0Athe hot, windy, flat lands of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec where all t=
he palm=0Atrees lean to the east. These pots are used as water cisterns, fo=
r fermenting=0Ahuge batches of plums and mangos and for making ox stew duri=
ng weddings and Day=0Aof the Dead. They stand three and a half feet tall an=
d are two feet wide at the=0Amouth. The surface is like sand paper and the =
walls are an inch thick. I also=0Anoted, the first time I saw these enormou=
s cisterns, that a man might fit=0Anicely in one of them too.=0A=0A=0A =
Unlike=0Aevery other village in southern Mexico, the potters of Ixtaltep=
ec are all men.=0AThey are big men with bulging, round and solid bellies ea=
rned through heavy=0Ataco eating and perhaps, a bit of beer swallowing. In =
contrast, their backs and=0Aarms are rippled with well-drawn muscles. The c=
lay is dug from the mines in=0Aclods that are spread in the sun to dry unti=
l they are hard as rock. Then the=0Apotters pound it all into powder with l=
arge wooden caveman clubs. They wedge it=0Aon the ground in 50-pound lumps,=
kneeling and using their forearms to kneed it=0Aand the full weight of the=
ir bodies, bellies being a key element, to work the=0Aclay back and forth.=
=0A=0A=0A The pots are=0Aformed on rough-hewn, tall, wooden wheels. T=
he potters work standing up and,=0Awith the exception of the small pots for=
the pi=C3=B1ata maker which are thrown off=0Athe hump, all the pots are co=
il built. The wheel is slowly turned while fat=0Acoil after fat coil is add=
ed. Just before the mass is too much for the wet clay=0Ato support the pot =
is set aside to harden for a while. =0A=0A=0A The pots are=0Afired in =
enormous, top loaded, woodfired sunken kilns. The top is at ground=0Alevel =
and is loaded until the pots are flush with the rim. Then the opening is=0A=
covered with large shards. The fire box is accessed through a short passage=
way=0Adown a few earthen steps. Firing is usually started around dawn and w=
ill=0Acontinue 12=E2=80=9115 hours. At its peak thick trunks are heaved int=
o the furnace.=0AThis is unbelievably hot work. I tend to sweat profusely i=
n this heavy climate=0Awith just the exertion of standing under a shade tre=
e and drinking coco water.=0AHow these men stand this heat is unfathomable =
to me. How these men do many=0Athings is unfathomable to me.=0A=0A=0A =
Not to long=0Aago I brought one of these huge pots home. Here in Oaxaca whe=
re there are no=0Arivers that one would wisely bathe in, no lakes at all, t=
he ocean six hard=0Adriving hours away and with our shower tired and slow w=
e thought a bath would=0Abe nice. This evening I dug a little hole in the g=
round, made short base stands=0Awith some old bricks and, with some help, s=
et the pot on the bricks, centered=0Aover the hole. Then I filled it with w=
ater, gathered a pile of wood and made a=0Afire underneath. Old Mario came =
wandering by on the road and asked what I was=0Aup to. I told him I was goi=
ng to cook my wife.=0A=0A=0A Three hours=0Alater the water was deemed=
hot enough, the night dark enough, the air cool=0Aenough. My wife climbed =
in to cook. It was too hot and a bucket of hot water=0Awas traded out for a=
bucket of cold. Then it was just right. She cooked until=0Awell done and t=
hen I climbed in.=0A=0A=0A The pot is deep and narrow. To cook but=0An=
ot burn one must avoid the bottom where the flames superheat the pot. I=0Aa=
chieved this by sitting in a deep squat, neck deep in the stew, with my fee=
t=0Atowards the front and my back nestled against the curve of the pot. Wed=
ged just=0Aso, with the water supporting my weight I found it quite comfort=
able. I only=0Ahad to be careful no to let the bottom most part of me sag t=
oo low that it=0Atouch the scorching base. And as I sat there thus suspende=
d, with just my head=0Ashowing, soaking up the mellowing heat under a starr=
y sky, flames licking up=0Athe side of my clay tub and feeling the heat wel=
ling up from very near below, I=0Aempathized with those fabled, ill fortune=
d, old time explorers who found=0Athemselves in a similar situation, but wh=
o had no intention of bathing.=0A=0A=0APerhaps just a tad more salt...=0A=
=0A=0A =0A =0A=0A=0A=0AAn WEB version of this tale, complete with illustrat=
ions, may be found at http://manos-de-oaxaca.com/jr_hot.htm.=0A=0A=0A =0A =
=0A=0AEric Mindling has worked with traditional potters in=0Asouthern Mexic=
o since 1992 as a rural pottery buyer and more recently running a=0Aspecial=
ized tour company. He creates Workshops and Tours for potters in the=0Avill=
ages of Oaxaca, Michoacan, Jalisco and Chihuahua. See www.traditionsmexico.=
com to learn=0Ahow you can be cooked in a clay pot, or at least learn to ma=
ke a clay pot to=0Acook in!=0A=0A =0ATraditions Mexico Hands On Tours=0A O=
axaca, Mexico=0A www.traditionsmexico.com=0A www.manos-de-oaxaca.com=0A =
=0A=0A=0A=0A
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