Filovci

Filovci has made pots since at least the eighteenth century, and what distinguishes its work is the firing: at the end of the burn the kiln is sealed and damp fuel is added, so the smoke and lack of oxygen turn the clay black through and through rather than glazing it. The result is unglazed black cookware that holds heat well and is still used for baking. A few families continue, showing the wheel and the kiln, and several thatched houses of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are protected as cultural monuments, and Plečnik used pieces from here in the ceiling at Bogojina.

The main sights

• The black firing - a sealed smoking kiln that blackens the clay without glaze.
• The wheel work - throwing demonstrated in the surviving family workshops.
• The cookware - unglazed black pots still made for baking and stewing.
• The Bogojina connection - Prekmurje pottery of this kind set into Plecnik's church ceiling.

When to go

April to October; workshops take visitors by arrangement rather than on fixed hours. Summer has the most activity. Winter firing is infrequent.

What to expect

Visits need arranging in advance and dropping in usually finds nothing open. The village is tiny with no facilities. Firings are occasional and cannot be seen on demand.

Nearby

Bogojina is north, and Murska Sobota is west.