What is Terracotta?

In fine art, the word Terracotta ("baked earth") is most commonly used to describe a type of sculpture, unglazed ceramic art, or decorative architecture, made from a coarse, porous clay, which is noted for its versatility, cheapness, and durability. In addition, ever since the era of Mesopotamian art along the Tigris and Euphrates, and Egyptian art along the Nile, terracotta bricks and tiles have been used for centuries in the building of domestic as well as civic structures. Terracotta was widely used in ancient art, notably in Chinese Pottery (from 10,000 BCE) and in Greek Pottery (from 7,000 BCE), as well as Mesopotamian sculpture and Egyptian sculpture, plus Minoan art from Crete, and Etruscan art on the Italian mainland. Terracotta statues were prevalent in Greek architecture - notably for temple decoration - while terracotta reliefs were a common feature of Roman architecture. The art of terracotta was revived during the Italian Renaissance and underwent a further revival during the 19th century.

How to Make Terracotta

Terracotta is usually made from a fairly coarse, porous type of clay. This is first shaped (or sculpted), then fired until hard. In the ancient world, it was left to harden in the hot sun; later, it was baked in primitive ovens created in the ashes of open fires. Ultimately, it was fired (at about 1000°C) in special ovens, known as kilns. Once fired, the clay assumes a brownish-orange color, ranging from an earthy ochre to red. Baked terracotta is not watertight, a layer of glaze is required for this. Sometimes recycled terracotta ("grog") is mixed with fresh clay to make a new batch of the material. Terracotta objects are far simpler and cheaper to create, replicate and decorate, than stone or bronze objects: even molds can be re-used. Furthermore, although terracotta is usually left unglazed, a range of different colors and textures can be obtained with a variety of glazes.

History

Terracotta was first used in Prehistoric art, as exemplified by the remarkable Venus of Dolni Vestonice (26,000-24,000 BCE), found buried in a layer of ash at a paleolithic encampment in Moravia. The paleolithic terracotta figure was fired in primitive kilns, created underneath open fires. Famous terracotta figurines from the era of Neolithic art include The Enthroned Goddess Figurine (c.6,000 BCE) from Catalhoyuk, Anatolia, and The Thinker of Cernavoda (5000 BCE) from the Lower Danube region in Romania. Bronze and Iron Age artists continued the terracotta tradition, see, for instance, the female fertility cult figures unearthed at Mohenjo-Daro, Pakistan (3000-1500 BCE), and The Burney Relief (c.1950 BCE) from Ancient Mesopotamia. In China, potters and sculptors have proved equally skillful with clay. In fact, Chinese art is responsible for the biggest collection of terracotta sculptures ever found - The Terracotta Army (246-208 BCE). (See below.) For an outline of the principles which underpin Oriental sculpture, see: Traditional Chinese Art. For more about the evolution of sculpture in China, please see the Chinese Art Timeline (c.18,000 BCE - present).

Early Egyptian, Minoan, Mycenean, Greek and Etruscan cultures, from around the Mediterranean, all employed terracotta for figurative works - such as the Tanagra Figurines from Boeotia in central Greece - and for various types of decorative art and architectural ornamentation. It was widely used by sculptors during the era of Hellenistic art (323-30 BCE), in particular. It was also used in Early Christian art, for tomb reliefs (from c.200 CE).