A Little Bit of History!
“Saint Spiridon, the Wonderworker made the pottery wheel and decided to work with it. He had great desire, but despite his endless trials, he never succeeded. He became discouraged and started to cry. From his fallen tears, the clay moistened and began to form in his hands…”
The piece of art you are looking at is a handmade Bulgarian royal sgraffito ceramic.
During the middle Ages, sgraffito was found in abundance in royal palaces. It had been used as dishware, as well as wall decoration. Between the XII and XIV century, the sgraffito popularity declined and many of its secrets were lost. During the archaeological digs in Tsarevets in the 1970’s, many beautiful vessels were found. From there, the rediscovery of the sgraffito technique began.
The word Sgraffito comes from the Italian word for “scratch”. The Sgraffito technique was popular among Italian potters pre 15th Century, but is believed to have originated in China where remnants have been found dating back to the Sung Dynasty (960-1297).
The Sgraffito technique involves covering a damp red clay vessel in a white slip. When the slip dries to a wax like consistency, a design is etched into the piece and then fired for the first time. The motifs usually represent nature, animals, or mythical symbols; themes common in other Bulgarian folk crafts such as handmade carpets and wood carvings. The vessel is then covered with colorful, transparent glazes and fired a second time. Traditionally the glazes are brown, green, and yellow in color.
Today there are only a few artisans in Bulgaria keeping the sgraffito tradition alive and we are one of them.