Ceramics Vocabulary

The specific mixture of clay types, fillers, and additives that make up the 3 types of clay: Earthenware, Stoneware, and Porcelain

• Clay body
• Bisque Fired
• Wheel Throwing
• Kiln

A low-fire, fine grained clay that is usually brown, orange, or red due to the minerals in the clay. Fires at Cone 06-04.

• Earthenware
• Bone Dry
• Wedging
• Slip

A mid-fire, coarse grained clay body that is usually off white to grey to light brown. Harder than earthenware, it fires at cone 5-6.

• Stoneware

• Centering

• Greenware

• Pyrometric Cones

A thin mixture of powdered glass, fluxes, and aluminum oxide that, when fired, creates a thin glassy layer. Used to color and seal pottery.

• Glaze
• Clay body
• Slip
• Wedging

A specialized oven used to fire a clay body, vitrifying the clay so it becomes insoluble.

• Kiln
• Coil Building
• Slab Building
• Clay body

An equal mixture of 50% clay and 50% waterthat is used to decorate pottery or "glue" plastic or leather hard clay parts together.

• Slip
• Coning
• Score
• Earthenware

Small, cone shaped pieces of clay that are designed to melt at specific temperatures to indicate the end of firing.

• Pyrometric Cones

• Earthenware

• Bisque

• Stoneware

A method of kneading the clay body to make it homogenous and remove air pockets and water.

• Wedging
• Firing
• Plastic Stage
• Glaze

Making small scratches in the surfaces of two clay pieces in order to attach them with slip.

• Score
• Glaze
• Leather Hard
• Centering

A method of creating a form by attaching ropes of clay on top of one another.

• Coil Building
• Glaze Fired
• Kiln
• Coning