In Pictures: A Journey Through the Clay Pottery Craft in Old Cairo
At the heart of Cairo lies an ancient district that goes back in time several centuries. Old Cairo, indeed, stood the test of time. It is one of the parts of Cairo that predates all of its surroundings.
Old Cairo was founded in the 10th Century and surged in importance in the 14th Century. With the rise of the Muslim rule, it was one of the main centers of Islamic culture. It was home to a wide array of artisans as well as craftsmen, including clay pottery manufacturing.
The quarries of Aswan, a city 1,000 kilometers south of Cairo, provided the granite used in clay pottery for hundreds of years. The same granite was used to make the statues of the ancient Egyptians, and to this day, in Old Cairo, the same granite is used in the clay pottery industry.
According to The National, the price of the clay pots produced in the workshops in Cairo today varies from EGP 20 to 2,000, depending on the size.
