Mr. Hoang Van Man, one of the few people who still maintain pottery making in Den village, Muong Chanh commune, Mai Son district, Son La province, shared that pottery making is associated with the history of formation, economic life, and unique culture of the Thai people over many decades. Previously, the whole commune made pottery, but over time this craft gradually faded away, many families no longer produced pottery, the scale and space for production and consumption of products increasingly narrowed. The whole commune now has only 3 households maintaining the ancient pottery profession, concentrated in Noong Ten village and Den village.

Mr. Hoang Van Man (white shirt) teaches the profession to the younger generation in the village.

According to Mr. Man, to make Muong Chanh pottery, one must choose good quality kaolin clay with many colors that can only be found in Muong Chanh commune. After each rice harvest, potters must dig about 1 - 1.5m deep in the field to reach the required soil layer. When the soil is collected, the workers must pound it until it is soft and pliable, then shape it on a turntable with a round wooden cutting board, placed upside down on a wooden pillar buried in the ground.

When the soil is taken from the field, it must be pounded until it is very soft and supple.

Once the ceramic is completely shaped, it will be fired, this is also the most important step that determines the quality of the product. First, the kiln will be lit on a low fire to dry it, when the ceramic turns pink, add more firewood to cook the ceramic.

To create color for the pottery, the craftsman puts chestnut leaves in the kiln and then covers the door and chimney. During the incubation process, the chestnut leaves burn, creating black smoke that permeates the product and creates the characteristic gray-black color of Muong Chanh pottery. The pottery takes a day and a night to be fired, then incubated in the kiln for about a week to create durability until it cools completely before being taken out of the kiln.

Shape on turntable.

After a long time of working in the pottery profession, Mr. Man has accumulated more experience and from there, he appreciates the hardships and happiness every time he produces a batch of quality pottery. Although maintaining the profession is still difficult, production is still small and sustainable, serving mainly the needs of the villagers, but for Mr. Man and those who love traditional pottery, it is a joy and pride.

The whole process is done by hand.

"The products are mainly sold to the villagers, they make pickled bamboo shoots, brew wine, make things to cook Thai food. In general, this job does not bring economic benefits to meet the work I do, but because of the love for the job, knowing how to do it makes me addicted, passionate, sometimes I take a break for a while and then have to do it again," said Mr. Man.

Muong Chanh people always have a love for pottery, the persistent efforts of Mr. Hoang Van Man as well as the Muong Chanh pottery makers will certainly be the ones to "pass on the torch" for the younger generation to learn and follow, so that Muong Chanh pottery can be maintained forever through the generations.

Muong Chanh pottery is diverse in size and shape, meeting the needs of most customers.

Mr. Lo Duc Tri, in Cang Muong village said: "I am very proud to be born and raised in a land rich in tradition like Muong Chanh commune. The handmade pottery village in the commune is also interested by the government, I myself am a young generation who will follow our ancestors to preserve what we have and promote our ancestors' traditions."

Currently, the People's Committee of Muong Chanh commune has been implementing many solutions to preserve the pottery making profession, including a pilot model of traditional pottery making tourism in the locality. Thereby, contributing to preserving the identity and preserving the unique heritage of the Thai ethnic people here./.

According to: vov4.vov.vn