How to Tell an Old Clay Pot from a New One

Old clay pots carry their history on their skin. Before you buy, run your eye — and your fingertips — over five quiet clues.

1. The ring test

Flick the rim gently with a fingernail. A well-fired old pot answers with a clear, bell-like ring; a dull thud can mean hidden cracks or a soft, underfired body.

2. Weight and wall

Hand-thrown antiques are rarely uniform. Feel for walls that thicken toward the base and a base that sits a touch unevenly — signs of a wheel, not a mould.

3. Patina, not paint

Real age shows as softened edges, faint mineral blooms, and wear exactly where hands would grip. Harsh, even colour is usually a modern finish.

4. The base tells the truth

Turn the piece over. Old pots often show knife-trim rings, grit stuck in the clay, or a faint maker's mark pressed by thumb.

5. Smell the clay

It sounds odd, but aged earthenware smells faintly of earth and woodsmoke, never of chemicals or fresh paint. Trust your nose.

Every piece we list at Mud & Lore passes these five checks before it is photographed — so the pot you fall for online is the pot that arrives.