On The Terracotta Trail

One of the oldest crafts, pottery has inevitably played an intrinsic role in Goan society. While the Kumbhars single-handedly shaped the destiny of pottery in Goa, this art form has evolved over the years.

- Patricia Ann Alvares

Moving in tandem with a tradition that has long been a part of our landscape, the potter’s wheel has been spinning its magic for centuries, weaving a trail as one of Goa’s most traditional and creative crafts. To fully understand this, we need to turn the wheel back to an era when the Kumbhars single-handedly shaped the destiny of pottery in Goa. In India, the shilpas or crafts arose as a corollary to man’s basic needs of food, clothing and shelter. As the land flourished and civilizations became more cultured, craftsmen organized themselves into guilds and with the passing of time, vocations become synonymous with caste and specialized crafts passed on from one generation to the next. These shilpas were also strongly influenced by historical, religious and mythological themes, shifting focus from their mere utilitarian value to more creative dimensions.

In Goa, as in the rest of the country, traditional crafts were wrought by members of a particular caste. Thus pottery was the preserve of the Kumbhars, shoes of the Chamars; furniture was traditional to the Suttars, basket weaving to the Manars while goldsmiths were referred to as Sonnars or Shettis. However, the uniqueness of Goan crafts lies in the background of its own chequered history which mirrors influences of Hindu, Muslim and Christian origin and present a unified artistic amalgam.