Welcome to Algeria Stamps

Aokas Pottery

Pottery is among the oldest human activities. It dates back to the Neolithic period, a period during which man discovered agriculture and sedentary life. It was then that his way of life, his behavior and his relationship with nature began to evolve. Previously, in prehistory, man lived by hunting and gathering and it was in the Neolithic, after the mastery of agriculture, that, for the purposes of preparing and preserving his food, he discovered pottery. This activity, which has continued for millennia and whose objects are made with great art, has become especially the prerogative of women. Indeed, it is the woman who, with her hands, models and shapes the clay using only rudimentary tools intended for filing and polishing. The objects are then decorated after being fired in simple ovens prepared for this purpose. If the pottery manufacturing techniques passed down from generation to generation remain simple, those concerning shapes and aesthetics have evolved considerably. In Algeria, as everywhere else, pottery constitutes an essential component of craftsmanship. In addition to its utilitarian function, it is the ultimate witness to history.