After we went to the totally wrong village which was also called Kukuo we finally made it to the correct village in Tamale where they produce ceramics and pottery.
We knew right away that we had reached the pottery-making Kukuo when we spotted a huge pile of smouldering hay, in which ceramic pots were being finished. Excellent! Arranging a tour wasn’t the easiest thing in the world, but after all, we had endured reaching this spot, we were not about to be denied. After a small amount of challenging back-and-forth in English/Dagbon/Sign-Language, we were seated legs-crossed in the small courtyard which connected a few of the adobe huts, and ready for our lesson.
I won’t bore you too much with the details of crafting clay into pots — there’s no magic to it, and if you’ve ever been in a third-grade crafts class, you know the drill. Wet your hands, work the clay, form the jar, smooth the jar, fire the jar, done.
But it was still wonderful to watch these ladies at work. Their arms were ripped; untold hours working with clay is apparently excellent for the triceps. Below is a mini-tour of the place, you will marvel at the simple tools used in making the jars.
