Faience

Faience – the first high-tech ceramic

Faience has been called ‘the first high-tech ceramic’  (Vandiver and Kingery 1987, 19). It is made up of silica, natron/plant ash and lime, usually coloured blue by the addition of cobalt and was used by the Egyptians to manufacture religious items, jewellery, etc. We will be looking at several of the objects in the Centre which are made from this material. You can find out about some of them here. 

Vandiver, P. and Kingery, W.D. 1987. Egyptian Faience: the first high-tech ceramic. In Kingery, W.D. ed., Ceramics and Civilisation 3, Columbus OH: American Ceramic Society, 19-34.

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