428 The Tinguian 



and Lakub are the only ones whose wares have a wide distribution. 



The clay is dampened, and is carefully kneaded with the hands to 

 remove lumps and gravel, and to reduce it to the proper consistency. 

 A handful is taken from the mass, and is roughly modeled with the 

 fingers to form the base of the pot. This is set on a wooden plate 

 which, in turn, is placed in a rice winnower (Plate XXXVI). The plate 

 takes the place of a potter's wheel, for it is turned with the right hand 

 while with the left the woman shapes the clay, and smoothes it off 

 with a dampened cloth. From time to time, she rolls out a coil of 

 clay between the palms of her hands, lays it along the top of the ves- 

 sel, and works and pinches it in. Further shaping and thinning is 

 done with a wooden paddle and the dampened hand, and then the jar 

 is allowed to dry slightly. Before the drying has progressed far 

 enough to render the sides rigid, a smooth stone is placed inside, and 

 the sides are tapped gently with a paddle until properly thinned and 

 shaped. 



After allowing a couple of days for drying, the potter rubs the 

 jar inside and out with smooth stones or lipi seeds, so as to give it 

 an even surface. 



When several jars or dishes have been prepared, they are placed 

 in carabao dung or other slow burning material and fired. This gen- 

 erally takes place at night, and the jars are left undistubred until morn- 

 ing, when they are ready for service. Occasionally resin is rubbed 

 over a jar while it is hot, thus giving it a glazed surface; this, how- 

 ever, is not common, as the resin quickly melts off the cooking uten- 

 sils, while porous jars are preferred as water containers, since the 

 seepage lowers the temperature of the contents. 



Vessels made in Lakub are often decorated with incised patterns 

 (Fig. 22, No. 8), but otherwise the Tinguian ware is plain. Chinese 

 jars are found in every village, and are highly prized, but the native 

 potters do not imitate them in form or decoration. Had Chinese blood 

 or influence ever been strong in the region, we might expect to find 

 the potter's wheel and traces of true glazing, but both are lacking. 



Pipe Making. — Both men and women smoke pipes, consisting of 

 a short reed handle and a small bowl. Men are the pipe makers, and 

 often show considerable skill in the decoration of their product. 



The common pipe-bowl is of clay, which has been carefully shaped 

 with the fingers and a short bamboo spatula. Designs are incised, and 

 the raised portions are further embellished by the addition of small 

 pieces of brass wire (Fig. 21, Nos. 4-5). The bowls are baked in a 

 slow fire, and the mouthpieces are added. 



