Guadix pottery
Guadix is an artisan city, particularly focused on pottery, thanks to the clay from its paradoxically called 'bad lands'. Wine jugs, meat jars and decorative objects are made using traditional methods, such as the ornate Accitana jug, originally a gift for brides, and the Guadix torico, of Iberian origin.
While in other places in Spain, trophies are made of metal, clay is still used in Guadix. This is what also happens with gifts that are given in different celebrations, which is where the relationship between fired clay and the people of Guadix comes from.
Guadix is the homeland of potters, since it has the necessary raw material in its clay hills and a long tradition recognised throughout Spain. Its artisans make water jugs, wine jugs, cheese bowls, botijos and meat jars. In addition to two decorative elements that represent the pinnacle of skill: the Accitana jug and the Guadix torico, both connected with ancient cultures.
The Accitana jug, also called jug of the bride or jug of the birds, first appeared in the eighteenth century. It originates from the standing jug, which was used to offer water to guests. From there, the potter begins to add ornaments that give it a baroque air: flowers, leaves, roosters, birds...
It becomes a unique gift for brides on their wedding day, a place where guests gifted money. These jugs have often appeared as a decorative element in the room from where the Three Kings give their annual Christmas greetings.
Of ancient origins, the Guadix torico is an ocarina in the shape of a bull that shepherds used as a communication system. It later came to be used as a children's toy. Today it is a beautiful display of craftsmanship that has been made by the hands of Accitan potters for millennia.
Another artisan speciality of Guadix is the elaboration of clay musical instruments, like the zambomba It consists of three parts, and at Christmas it is widely used due to its deep sound, which is achieved by rubbing the membrane that covers the sound box with a reed. Other instruments, such as trumpets, violins and various percussion instruments, are made using the red clay from the hills of Guadix.
