About Antica Ceramica

Antica Ceramica imports each hand-made product from our workshop in Caltagirone, Sicily. Our workshop has only 6 employees and each employee uses a traditional hand-made process of old techniques and patterns.

Explaination of the Product

Antica Ceramica imports majolica from Caltagirone, one of the liveliest Baroque towns in central Sicily.

 

It’s known in Italy as “The city of Sicilian ceramics” due to its thousand-year-old tradition. The name itself “Caltagirone” derives from an Arabic word meaning the Castle or Fortress of the vases.

Caltagirone ceramics have been used for centuries to decorate parks and churches, streets and squares. The typical colors of local pottery, sage green and yellow, are the colors of Sicily itself, of its sun and breathtaking beauty.

The making of majolica

First Step: The Potter
The potter will create a piece by hand shaping and hand turning it on a wheel using a plain lump of refined clay.
The moulded clay piece is called "In Terra" (Green ware) and is placed in the open air for natural drying.
When it dries it assumes a light grey colour and it is ready for its first firing in the kiln.

 

 

 

Second Step: The First Firing
The dried piece is loaded onto large racks and wheeled into the kiln. The first firing is done at 1890° Fahrenheit (1030° Celsius). After the firing, the kiln must remain closed for hours to allow the temperature to cool gradually, as a dramatic change in temperature could cause cracking. It is during this firing that the piece, now referred to as “Biscotto” (Bisque), acquires the typical terracotta red colour.

 

 

 

Third Step: The Glazing
Once cooled, the bisque is dipped into a bath of fast drying liquid glaze called “Primo Bianco” (First white) or “Smalto” (enamel). The Bisque, now wholly covered by the white powdery glaze, is ready for painting. This fine powder will prevent the colours from spreading and blurring into each other during the painting and will bond with the subsequent coloured glazes during the final firing. 

 

 

 

 

Fourth Step: The Painting
The artist may paint a decoration freehand, or may use a "Spolvero", a sort of pounce, to create a type of stencil for more complex patterns. The glazes used to produce the colours are in some cases quite different from the colours that emerge after the final firing.

 

 

 

 

Fifth Step: The second Firing
In this final step, the painted item is loaded again into the kiln for a second firing at 1690° Fahrenheit (920° Celsius). This delicate process requires great care to avoid scratching or touching any item to be fired. The final firing may take up to 24 hours with more than 12 hours of constant high heat. Like the first firing, it is necessary to let the kiln cool down naturally to avoid the devastating effects of “thermal shock”.

 

 

 

 

The City

 

The Workshop

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The Creation