Dan Kwian Pottery

Dan Kwian means ox-cart stop, from the village's role as a halt on the trading route between Khorat and Cambodia. Its pottery comes from a specific material: clay dug from the banks of the Mun river nearby, unusually high in iron, which fires without glaze to a deep rust-red-brown with a metallic sheen, and rings when struck. Mon potters are credited with starting the trade here. Traditional output was water jars, pots and cooking ware; from the 1960s the village turned to decorative work - relief panels, lamps, screens, garden ware, sculpture and architectural pieces - and it is now a substantial industry with workshops lining more than a kilometre of the main road, selling direct at prices well below city retail. Kilns and throwing can be seen at many of them. The pieces are heavy and fragile, and getting anything sizeable home is the practical obstacle.

What you actually see

• The iron-rich clay - dug from the Mun river banks and fired unglazed.
• The rust-red colour - the metallic finish the clay produces without glaze.
• The roadside workshops - over a kilometre of kilns and showrooms.
• The decorative shift - the move from household pots to sculpture and panels.

When to go

November to February, on weekday working hours when the kilns and wheels are active. Two hours covers a walk along the workshops.

Honest expectations

Working workshops rather than a visitor centre - ask before photographing. Pieces are heavy and fragile and shipping is the real constraint on buying. Little English spoken. The road is busy and the walking is along it.

Nearby

Nakhon Ratchasima is north; Phimai and the Sai Ngam banyan are north-east.