Nicaraguan pottery and ceramics have a long tradition, stemming from well before the time of the Spanish Conquest. A traditional centre of the art of cereamic making is San Juan de Oriente, using the style and technigues of the indigenous indians, who were part of the Nahuatl-speaking Nahua people, more popularly associated with the Aztecs.

The technique of handmade ceramic pottery using natural paints and clays goes back about 2,500 years. San Juan de Oriente was originally given the name of San Juan de los Platos by the Spanish, because of the plates, pottery and sculptures made in the region. Nicaragua gained independence from the Spanish in 1821 and the present name was adopted.

Since those times, Nicaragua has been through much turmoil and many changes. It may amaze many that in 1856 an American, William Walker, got himself “elected” as president of Nicaragua, though it was short-lived, as he was driven out one year later and was executed. At a later time, the US became involved to the extent that Nicaragua was in effect under US Marines' occupation from 1912 to 1933.

The Nicaraguan population is now an ethnic mix, intermingled with the Spaniards and later with an influx of other European immigrants. It is now a characteristically “latin”people. Spanish is the official language, and the customs have a strong Spanish flavour.

Yet something from the ancient culture has survived.

One example is the Nicaraguan artisans' tradition of fine handicraft and pottery. A centre of such pottery works is the village of San Juan de Oriente. The artisanship, carried over for generations, was and has been mainly the work of rural womenfolk. The work is slow and painstaking in the traditional way. And the earnings for such work have been meagre. Their lives have been hard and spartan.

In recent times, the conditions of the artisans and the industry have improved as the result of an amazing intervention spearheaded by an American group known as Potters for Peace.

In 1986 a group of potters from Washington went to Nicaragua on a mission of humanitarian aid. They became involved with a women's pottery collective, and on their return started a fund-raising campaign under the banner “Potters For Peace”.

It is now a registered Nicaraguan non-government organization. Essentially, it is a US based non-profit network, consisting not only of potters but also technicians and people in education . They derive their funds from donations and pottery sales.

The have offered technical training and marketing assistance to the Nicaraguan potters and have developed and built low-cost fuel-efficient kilns and alternative fuel burners (using agricultural waste).

They have revitalised and improved a long tradition and upgraded the livelihood of these rural folk. They have also helped to build a type of ceramic water filter, which has provided clean drinking water in place of the unsanitary water that used to cause many children's deaths. This became particularly urgent after a hurricane in 1998 created a crisis. The water filter units are now distributed also to other countries.

The pottery produced is beautifully designed and finished, bearing modern motifs as well as harking back to the pre-Columbian past.

What better mix is there than peacefully promoting art, social justice and humanitarian objectives all at the same time?

Nicaragua

Chorotega

A Million Hands

Potters for Peace