Thousands flock to Seagrove every Saturday morning for the magic of kilns opening. We’ve got a taste at the NC Pottery Center featuring exquisite work from pre-historic Native American through present day.

The center is open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10AM to 4PM. Admission is $2 adults, $1 high school students, free for kids and members. NEW! Free live demos with a local potter on Saturdays. Call (336) 873-8430 to schedule a group tour ($4 per person) or to get more info.

“Ugly Jugs” Faces - The origins are still debated today, here are some of the theories:

• African slaves brought the mysterious burial ceremonies tradition with them. One year after the funeral the family of the deceased will retrieve the jug.

If they found it whole then they will celebrate.

Otherwise, it symbolized the spirit was struggling with the devil and no celebration was held.

• People put faces on jugs so children will stay away from liquor.

• Most believe the faces were just caricatures of friends and neighbors.

Making a face vessel is a tedious task, where the form is just the beginning.

After the pot dries to the “leather hard” state when can be handled without warping, the artist still has to apply all the pieces that make up the face.

The prominent signature teeth are added last to create the Face Jug’s famous toothy grin.

Figurative Clay - Human and animal figurative motifs were first found in prehistoric caves to appease gods, honor loved ones or to create toys for children.

Today many accomplished potters continue the ancient tradition.

They create figurative or whimsical pieces using throwing or hand-building techniques that can be inches or life-size high.

Artists enjoy the spontaneity of pinching and piecing clay together.

For many this is reminiscent of childhood years and their first experience in learning to work with clay.

Upcoming 2009 - 2010 Events Calendar

• Through October 31, 2009, “Historical Pottery of Fayetteville” featuring 19th Century Webster and Poe Pottery

• Visit for free the Museum of North Carolina Traditional Pottery to admire and purchase one of a kind pottery from over 90 local artists. The museum is currently located in the old Seagrove grocery store (and short walking distance from the Pottery Center), awaiting a much anticipated move to a state-of-the-art facility.
The jars and jugs, milk crocks and churns, pitchers and dirt dishes embody the North Carolina history, culture and a perennial artistic spirit.

• See an artist at work, most are happy to show children in detail how pots and jugs take shape.
Get the shops and gallery guide from either the Museum or the Pottery Center.

• Take the half an hour drive to the NC Zoo, one of the largest, modern and fun-packed zoological parks in the country ($10 adults, $8 seniors, $6 kids 2-12).

Every Saturday in October bring the children to celebrate the exotic, the endangered and the mysterious as part the terrific ZooFEST.

• Fly away at the NC Aviation Museum in Asheboro to admire America’s greatest warplanes from War World II through Vietnam, all but one still flyable! Admission is $5 adults, free for kids 6 and under.

• Get grooving in Cheraw SC (an hour drive from Seagrove), October 16 - 18, at the SC Jazz Festival, honoring Dizzie Gillespie the city’s beloved music genius.

Enjoy the finest pottery in Seagrove, NC, where the wheels never stop turning!

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