Crafting potterry

For centuries residents of Ban Thung Luang in Sukhothai have been producing earthenware for home use but now their products, given their unique art lines and creative design, are also beginning to show great export potential.

According to Ong-art Libpong, a potter with 20 years of experience, most households in this village in Khiri Mat district earn their living by sculpting clay.

"Take a walk through our village and you will find various choices of pottery," he said.

Ban Thung Luang has been a farm community since the Sukhothai period - from 1238 to 1438. The villagers made pottery when they were not farming.

They used clay from rice fields to sculpt pots for storing water, cooking rice or keeping accessories.

That expertise, passed down the generation, has found new admirers today. The pottery making involves nine steps, among them mixing clay with fine grains of sand, compressing, sculpting and designing. Then the items are placed in a huge oven fired by charcoal for two nights at 1,200 degrees Celsius.

In a day one potter can make up to 50 pieces, depending on size and design. One of the more admired specimen is pottery carved with Thai art. They are popular among resorts and hotels because fitted with light bulbs they make good room and garden decoration items.

Suthipong Chaiboontham runs his mother's pottery factory that has been operating for 17 years. The uniqueness of his products attracts customers nationwide, including foreigners.

"We specialise in a Thai art called 'Kruewan'. The details are more intricate than those made in Nakhon Sawan and Nakhon Ratchasima," he said.

The factory exports pottery to Malaysia, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

"We are now trying to add variety by increasing our product lines, and among them are fish tanks with lighting and design patterns based on the lotus flower and so forth," he said.

The fish tanks have won Khiri Mat four-star OTOP (one tambon, one product) rating.

The villagers at Ban Thung Luang welcome visitors with open arms. Their community should particularly appeal to people keen to learn ancient pottery as well as those looking for souvenirs at affordable prices.

Ban Thung Luang is in Khiri Mat, 17 kilometres from Muang district of Sukhothai. Use highway 101 (Sukhothai-Kamphaeng Phet) and follow the road sign leading to the village.

For more information, call 055-693-451 or the Tourism Authority of Thailand at 1672.

Sukhothai is 427 kilometres from Bangkok. Its ancient ruins comprising some 21 temples over 45 square kilometres at Si Satchanalai Historical Park are a World Heritage site. The park is about 55 kilometres north of the provincial town.

Six and a half kilometres north of the park is a study centre where Songkhalok kilns are preserved. Also on show are ancient pottery, utensils and decorative items. The centre