Naturally occurring clay usually has impurities such as rocks and sand in it. There’s a way to remove these by mixing the clay in suspension and draining that water off leaving the impurities behind.
image: Primitive Technology
I started by digging a pit to receive the clay. Then dug clay from the creek bed and put it next to the pit in a pile. Water was mixed into the pile and it was allowed to sit for a while.
The water/clay mixture was then drained off into the collection pit where it settled. This was done a number of times. After settling and the water seeping out, the pure clay was mixed with grog (crushed old pottery) and made into pots.
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The pots were fired and of good quality, making a ringing noise when flicked indicating no cracks or weakness. This method of purifying clay saves a lot of time and effort by removing the step of manually removing rocks from the clay body.
