Egypt, ceramic history

Ceramics have a very long history. Rocks, which are natural ceramic materials, served as the earliest tools. Later, clay vessels dried in the sun or baked in fires served as containers for food and water. These early vessels were crude and quite porous. With the discovery of glazing, which probably occurred about 3000 B.c. in Egypt, pottery became more serviceable as well as more beautiful. Prized porcelain is essentially the same material as crude earthenware, but specially selected clays and glazings are used for porcelain, which is also fired at a very high temperature. 

---