It has that elusive "I made this thing and it turned out so much cooler than I thought it would and I am way more excited than I can convey right now" feel to it
I think something to be said for all these episodes are just how well they're all put together. You must really take an extraordinary amount of care in how you set everything up camerawise because I've watched a thousand things professionally produced nowhere near as seamless, cogent, and clear as these have all been. One of my absolute favourite RU-vidrs
'What could possibly go wrong ...? It's impossible to predict' 🤣 I just love your dead-pan humour. Fascinating to see how you're learning and refining your pottery skills, and also to hear your musings on pottery's origins. I'd love to be able to do this, but vicarious pleasure is an acceptable substitute for now. 😊
My mum's a potter and before she got a kiln she used to do pit firing. She'd dig a big pit in the back garden that she'd fill with sawdust with the pots in amongst it.....with the sawdust even filling them. She'd then start a fire on top of the sawdust and once it burnt down she would cover up the whole thing with a couple of metal sheets and just leave it for a couple of days. She got some pretty good results.
Hey Dr. Mike Shrimp, you've been pretty clear in the past that you read almost all of your comments, and I just wanted to say how much I appreciate your content right now. I am going through a very horrible time in my life, and one of the things I've been doing to cope is going through all of your talking series' and I just wanted to let you know how good it has been for me to just sit in bed and listen and watch you experiment, I wish I could be more like you in that sense. I hope that as the days turn into weeks I can move past what is causing me so much grief right now, but for the time that I do spend looking for anything to distract me, I will be here watching your content, it truly is pure entertainment, please keep it up.
That tiny seed pot really did turn out nicely, even if the camera wasn't doing it justice. If I didn't know it was made out of clay, I might assume that it was a metal pot, or at least that it had been painted at some point.
Could be getting my chemistry wrong here, but if iron-oxide undergoes reduction (as he mentioned might have happened in his pit), doesn't it turn back into pure iron? Maybe some of the rust has gone back to being iron, which would explain the shiny appearance
@@henningerhenningstone691 I doubt it’s getting reduced to unoxidized iron (that needs a very very high temp, around 1800 F according to Ellington charts). I think it’s going from Fe2o3 to FeO, which is black.
I don't usually comment on stuff but I wanted to say thank you for this series: I know nothing about pottery but your process of discovery and learning is incredibly pleasing, especially as I've wanted to experiment with pottery myself. The experiments with the iron oxide grog this late on in the process demonstrate this really well! Your attitude towards understanding the local history as well as experimenting with other styles and shapes from different regions has inspired me with my own creative projects. To me this series emulates just _a_ discovery of pottery from a time so different to ours, yet one which feels so relatable. It's like the feeling of holding a historical artefact and relating yourself to the person who first made it, and every inheritor since then. Perhaps the word "primitive" is too diminishing, but I feel like this process of discovery is something almost essential to the human experience. Thank you for creating this.
I thoroughly agree. I can't think of specific "discoveries" off the top of my head, but I would love more series like this one, where some craft discovered long ago is learned through experimentation and trial and error. It's just the perfect combination of informative, enjoyable, inspiring, and a slight dash historical.
This channel is such a treasure. You never know what you're going to get from it next, and there's always plenty of enthusiasm behind each new weird endeavor. You really seem to have your priorities in life worked out nicely, and it's refreshing.
I don’t know if you saw it, but one Christmas, possibly last one or the one before, ‘Morgan Donner’ actually made a choose your own adventure video series by setting videos to undiscoverable and only putting links in from the video you were watching. Logistical genius.
Actually having them by the fire and over the embers is VERY important as although they won't be moist, there will be chemically bonded water in the clay. When you fire in a kiln, you take it slowly up to 100°c to let that bonded water escape as steam. That seed pot is truly beautiful!!! I love the leaf imprint too. One of my students wants to do similar ceramic experiments, I will refer her to this series.
There is something immensely wholesome and satisfying about these “I’d like to try a thing” videos; basket-weaving, pottery, whatever you put your hand to next.
I love that as you experiment, it's sort of like experiencing history first-hand. You're following the steps ancient people would have done to finally arrive at a useful product.
Wild to say but this has definitely been the most interesting series on this channel! So many successful side quests and little backtracks to "perfect" techniques. The whole series kinda encompasses so many different parts of the channel. Love it.
That tiny seed pot is so pretty! I'm so glad for all the steps you've shown of this process. I think too many times, we only see the successes of people doing things, and it can lead to being frustrated over times when things don't go well. Knowing that there can be many not-quite-successful steps that teach us something along the way is a lesson worth taking.
wow that tiny "seed pot" turned out so amazing, it creates the feeling of envy in me. Please do us a favor and use it in your cooking video. Maybe pour in some olive oil or seasoning or something. I would love to see that.
There are lots of RU-vid channels that try to recreate the history of technologies like making pots or smelting iron. None of them wonder or speculate about what happy accidents like leaving a clay figure next to a fire overnight might lead to. Now you've got me wondering if adding different ground up colored rocks to clay to see what colors came out might be what led to smelting metals.
Man, these videos are the reason why you are by far my favourite youtuber. These improvised series where you just learn something you initially weren't good at but are interested enough to pursue it are so good. The difference of quality between this and the last firing is abismal, plus the side quests turned out amazing! Keep up the good work! :)
I call this video series a happy accident…you intended for it to be a linear series of videos, however, the joys of failure and inspiration have led to this brilliantly meandering series that I find to be incredibly enjoyable. Thank you for taking the time to do this!
I am all here for an entire series of sidequests for other big projects you're working on. Same idea as Scammers Who Dumped Me, but with all the other fun projects in your life. This clay series is genuinely one of my favorite series you've ever done!
This is one of my favourite of your series. There’s a lot of exciting twists and turns, with some pretty impressive results given the forage-y feel of it all. It’s the formula to life: with a bit of knowledge and creativity you can do pretty much anything
A counterpoint to your idea about clay figures (though you're probably right): like you mentioned earlier in the video, fires might have been made on top of clay-rich soil, and the results would not only be noticeable, but conveniently sort of bowl shaped.
At the point where everything went in the fire and the outcome was so uncertain, I think all of us were standing on the sidelines with you Mike, with bated breath, praying with expectation that all would go well! What a success. And that little iron pot is amazing!
Every one of your videos I watch just makes me respect you more and more, you're absolutely an inspiration - wise and a good teacher but also relatable (small things like your pride water bottle), all without even pointing them out. I honestly have never come across anyone who deserves more respect than you; hats off Mr Shrimp 😊
I'm really enjoying this series; it triggered a memory of wanting to try this as a kid in the 90's when I discovered clay in the garden. I only ever got to dry the thing I made in the sun. I really want to try this again, learning from your results
Vinegar and lots of small chunks of copper can make a slurry for a glaze of copper for your pots. Dry it and Mix it with a food wise glaze. You can make or buy the glaze powder. Use a rock polisher and Nickel ball bearings to crush glass.
Your humour is so smart and quick witted. I just love it. You playing with the little figures is just so sweet and pure hearted! Also, love the rainbow coloured water bottle 💚
Such joy to see the pots after firing. Just have to hope now that the next stage is as successful. I was thinking, as you, of the effect of the firing and smoke on food cooked in them. Maybe just heat water to start and see how it goes from there. That's what I'd do, but, Mr Shrimp' you will no doubt be well ahead of the game! Such fun!! Thanks for sharing these videos. A total joy!!
Thank you, Mr. Shrimp, it WAS interesting! I especially like how I feel like I'm learning about our ancestors and how they must have lived, but I also have been rooting for the pots to fire successfully and it was a relief to see the results in this video. :)
It's hard to describe the level of kinship and affection I feel for humanity listening to you theorize about the discovery of fired clay. In a lot of ways I think our lives would seem completely alien to ancient humans, but no matter what we always find a way to gather around and tell stories.
I imagine perhaps incorrectly that the association with heat it quite likely. “I left that clay out in the sun and it went hard. I could shape this into something that might be useful. It dried in the warm sun light. My fire is warm. Maybe I can speed this up by putting this near or in the fire.” Obviously that is a super simplified version of what I mean but I feel like its a plausible.
that little intro at the begginning where he explains the steps and objective of the series is starting to sound more and more like a theme song every time he repeats it. love the vibe
I say it every time, but I really love this series! And the little "side quests" are great, both because they help you learn things that are useful in later stages, and just because I can't watch these without going "but what if...". It's a nice treat when I find myself wondering about something and then the video itself addresses it
So fascinated by this series. My Mom used to make pottery as a hobby. She set up a wheel in the basement. Another theory I've heard about the invention of pottery is that firing was invented when people noticed what happened to the ground underneath a camp fire.
Following your pottery journey and the issues you ran into in previous episodes im so happy for you that it finally worked out :D Looking forward to next episode.
My favorite things so far have been your daughter's wobbly sided dish, the burnished seed pot, the pot you painted with curly lines, and the wavy dish that had the leaf in the bottom. Regarding that dish, it vaguely has the shape of an ashtray. I dunno if that material would make a good ashtray, but if it can maybe you could gift it to someone you know who smokes. Any of these pieces would make lovely gifts, though.
15:14 in a forest near me I found an apple tree with a ridiculous amount of apples on it!! Some up to 200 g with a Brix percentage of 15.4!!!! I've already taken just over 100 kg and almost processed them all! Still atleast 400kg left on the tree! (UK westmidlands)
Dear Mr Shrimp as someone that loves things that are no ones favorite, the the pot with the utmost potential for future exciting development is the wingle- wangle pot... I understand all of the other pieces of pottery and their construction, but this wavy pot tickles my brain and can almost see all the possibilities of shapes found in nature that are wiggly... Thank you for all your smart hard work!
The tiny pot high in iron looks a bit like a small turtle I got as a child on vacation in Santa Clara, New Mexico. Perhaps the woman who made it used a similar technique. Great video as usual, Thanks!!! 😘 From Texas
Fire-roasted apples are such a good idea, I don't know why I've never heard of it ! And it's so satisfying to see you actually succed in firing your pots ; even though we viewers are doing 0% of the work, I think after so many episodes, side quests and experiments we're all emotionally invested in the journey. Bit bummed that the iron ore pattern didn't wotk though
I love your view on creating something with no experience. I feel the same and often find that when I figure something out for myself, in my own way, I better understand how to do/make that thing. Thank you Mr Shrimp for sharing this wonderful experience with us
I don't know why but for some reason the "Forbidden Gravy" graphic over the still of the clay and rust dust mixture was extremely comical to me. I giggled about it much more than it warranted. My cat reacted to my repeated giggles by staring at me with a look expressing complete and total disdain, which naturally caused me to laugh and her to make a hasty retreat.
Excellent series. I know very little about pottery and have enjoyed learning. I had thought every firing needed a kiln with a controlled cool down. I like how you did it and the fact that it was done that way for thousands of years before the idea of a kiln came about.
Loving this series! At first I was only interested to see the results, which combination would make for the best cooking pot. Now I've also gotten really interested in the little side projects and don't want the series to end just yet. The more you continue to experiment and try out different additives, the more interesting it becomes.
I know this would've taken so much time, planning, editing and so on, but I'm really enjoying this series. I watch most of your videos, when time allows and like most others, I enjoy the "real" aspects to your videos. This is all just science, cooking included and love that you "show your workings" and the things that didn't quite make the grade. I also love the little touches of humour you put in as well. I wonder what you've got lined up for the next few months.
Loving this series - that little seed pot is a thing of joy! Looking forward to a follow up video on property developers retro fix subsidence issues on flood plain new builds in a couple of years time too 😂
This series really shows how impressive things on Primitive Technology channel is! Being able to make pottery out of clay thats less of clay-clay and more just dirt and water mixed, without modern tools, when it has taken you more than a month and there's still no actual pot, surely takes some skill, knowlege, and I assume failed attempts! (should be noted, that does assume that channel shows honest depiction of reality, but I think it is a fair assumption. Also, I hope this doesn't take away from your achievements, you're doing great!)
I recall a method of pottery making from the book Robinson Cruzoe by Daniel Defoe. The protagonist had problems with making clay vessels that would retain their shape, so he put the clay on the inside and outside of other organic objects that acted as scaffolding, like weawed baskets, fruits etc,etc. The organics would burn away during the firing leaving the clay vessel behind. It was a success (in the book at least) as that the vessels held up better and nice bi-effect of decorative impressions left by the baskets and fruits.
