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Potters and potteries

The information we have refers to the last 250-300 years, but is probably applicable to very ancient procedures. To better understand the development of pottery in the Basque Country, we need to refer to the livestock economy that was for centuries the main source of wealth for most of the Basque population. Mountainous areas were used for sheep grazing, and it is well known that in this type of economy, with herds travelling from winter to summer pastures and back, wooden utensils were always considered to be more suitable than fragile pottery. This is why pottery developed more slowly in the humid areas of the Basque Country than in the farmlands of Navarre and Álava.