Manufacture of Pottery.—In nearly every village there are two or three women who make jars and dishes, but the potters of Abang Page 426and Lakub are the only ones whose wares have a wide distribution.
The clay is dampened, and is carefully kneaded with the hands to remove lumps and gravel, and to reduce it to the proper consistency. A handful is taken from the mass, and is roughly modeled with the fingers to form the base of the pot. This is set on a wooden plate which, in turn, is placed in a rice winnower (Plate [XXXVI]). The plate takes the place of a potter's wheel, for it is turned with the right hand while with the left the woman shapes the clay, and smoothes it off with a dampened cloth. From time to time, she rolls out a coil of clay between the palms of her hands, lays it along the top of the vessel, and works and pinches it in. Further shaping and thinning is done with a wooden paddle and the dampened hand, and then the jar is allowed to dry slightly. Before the drying has progressed far enough to render the sides rigid, a smooth stone is placed inside, and the sides are tapped gently with a paddle until properly thinned and shaped.
After allowing a couple of days for drying, the potter rubs the jar inside and out with smooth stones or lipi seeds, so as to give it an even surface.
When several jars or dishes have been prepared, they are placed in carabao dung or other slow burning material and fired. This generally takes place at night, and the jars are left undisturbed until morning, when they are ready for service. Occasionally resin is rubbed over a jar while it is hot, thus giving it a glazed surface; this, however, is not common, as the resin quickly melts off the cooking utensils, while porous jars are preferred as water containers, since the seepage lowers the temperature of the contents.
Vessels made in Lakub are often decorated with incised patterns ([Fig. 22], No. 8), but otherwise the Tinguian ware is plain. Chinese jars are found in every village, and are highly prized, but the native potters do not imitate them in form or decoration. Had Chinese blood or influence ever been strong in the region, we might expect to find the potter's wheel and traces of true glazing, but both are lacking.
Pipe Making.—Both men and women smoke pipes, consisting of a short reed handle and a small bowl. Men are the pipe makers, and often show considerable skill in the decoration of their product.
The common pipe-bowl is of clay, which has been carefully shaped with the fingers and a short bamboo spatula. Designs are incised, and the raised portions are further embellished by the addition of small pieces of brass wire ([Fig. 21], Nos. 4–5). The bowls are baked in a slow fire, and the mouthpieces are added. Page 427
A second type of pipe, or cigar holder, is made of bamboo ([Fig. 21], Nos. 1–3). Designs are incised in the sides, oil is applied, and the pipe is held in the smoke of burning rice-straw until the lines become permanently blackened ([Fig. 22], Nos. 1–3).
Figure 21.
