The story of ‘Fawakhir Talkha’
The city of Talkha has been known for its pottery industry for decades, especially in the area known today as Al-Fakhura Street, or “Fawakhair Talkha.” This industry is one of the oldest Egyptian industries, dating back to prehistoric times, if not the oldest. During the reign of King Farouk, it moved from the city of Samannoud in the Gharbia governorate to Talkha, brought there by one of the “pottery makers” who spread the craft in the city, until it became famous and its trade flourished among the people of the governorate and some neighboring governorates, before it was threatened with extinction in recent years.
Pottery sellers on Al-Fakhura Street
Al-Fakhura Street in the city of Talkha is still bustling with “pottery sellers.” Each of them displays the wares he inherited from his father, and his father from his grandfather, selling pottery such as planting pots, water jugs, and bathroom sinks and their stands. They also sell various other types of pottery, such as vases, cups, and plates.
Despite these stalls scattered throughout the area, today there is a lack of pottery makers, or “fawakhiriya,” who had long been abundant here. It also lacks the pottery workshops for which it was famous. Not a single workshop remains in operation in the area, as they have all been demolished or abandoned. In fact, the craft itself has returned to Samannud, a city that is still bustling with pottery factories and craftsmen.
Imported pottery instead of local
The reality today is that everything on display in the region’s pottery shops is actually imported from outside the region, from factories scattered throughout the West and elsewhere. After being locally made in the region, pottery is now imported from outside.
In fact, many things have happened in the region, ultimately leading to the demise and complete extinction of this craft. This is what the potters of Talkha say today, in their conversations about pottery, how it was and how it spread, and how it disappeared.
The emergence of pottery in Talkha
Master potter Muhammad Hamza al-Fawakhri, who is over 70 years old and has spent most of his life making pottery, explains that he learned the craft as a child from his father, along with his brothers. Today, he ends up sitting in front of his brush on Al-Fakhura Street. Meanwhile, his sons buy pottery from a factory in Al-Gharbia, prepare the brush, display the goods on it, and sell them.
His cousin, Master Hamdi Hassan al-Fawakhri, adds that the story began with their great-grandfather, Master Mustafa al-Fawakhri. He learned the craft from his father, along with his three brothers. He then decided to move from Samannoud in Gharbia to Talkha in Dakahlia and settle there. Mustafa established the first pottery workshop in the area and gradually began working with his sons. A number of local residents joined him, and they all learned the pottery trade from him. The number of pottery workshops gradually increased until the entire area was filled with workshops and a few houses. The street turned into nothing more than a market for selling pottery.
The potters move away from the houses
Over time, the area became crowded with residents and urban sprawl. By the early 1990s, its appearance had completely changed, with the disappearance of green spaces and an increase in the number of newly built houses. The pottery workshops were removed, demolished, and then relocated.
Teacher Hamdi Hassan al-Fawakhri recounts that he was working in his pottery workshop one day when a neighbor came to him with his son, who was not yet ten years old. He explained to him the danger that the pottery workshops posed to his son’s health. The smoke from the pottery kilns had caused him to develop pneumonia at such a young age. He was still being treated in hospitals.
Similar complaints were repeated by people in the area. The potters were forced to move their kilns to another area in the middle of the land, far from the buildings. The pottery workshops remained in the area until today, only to display and sell their goods.
Why did the pottery industry collapse?
Since the pottery kilns were moved, the number of potters or “craftsmen” has gradually declined. Some of them were unable to work due to their old age, while others traveled to the Gulf countries to work in the same profession but with higher salaries and better returns. Most of them left their work in those traditional, primitive kilns to work in factories in the west, in Samannoud, Al-Furqat, and elsewhere. These factories have modern kilns, and workers are not forced to extract silt from the ground with their hands as they used to.
The new bakers were also interested in educating their children in schools instead of teaching them the trade. In addition, most of their children themselves turned away from it to study, travel, and so on. The situation continued in this manner until the coronavirus pandemic struck in 2020. The pandemic did not completely end until all the potteries had been abandoned and completely destroyed. All the potters had left the area, and only the last potter, Hassan Hamdi, remained. He still makes pottery by hand to this day and displays his wares on Al-Fakhura Street next to his house.
The last potter in Talkha
Master Hamdi tells his story with pottery, which began when he was eleven years old. He says he was fascinated by this craft, and how this liquid clay could be transformed into a water jug, a planting pot, or a bathroom sink. How could it come out with such precision, strength, and elegance? He watched his father and the potters who worked with him. He handed them what they needed and helped them as a boy. But he was eager to learn the craft quickly.
One night, he sneaked into his father’s pottery workshop, brought the clay, and climbed onto the “machine.” He spent the night trying to make a single pot, but he did not succeed. He continued like this for fifteen nights, until he finally succeeded. He was overjoyed and made ten pots that night. Then he left them and went to bed to sleep.
The ten pots
In the morning, his father asked those around him about the ten pots! When he found out that they were made by his son Hamdi, he called him over seriously. He ordered him to climb onto the potter’s wheel, brought the clay, and placed it in front of him. He said to him, “From today, you are no longer a boy, you are now a craftsman, so get to work!”
Hamdi has been making pottery in various shapes and colors ever since, and today he is 67 years old. He visits schools in the city to show students his skills in clay modeling. With a single lump of clay, he makes a cup, then reshapes it into a vase, a tagine, a bowl, a pot, or a plate. He does all this with such speed and dexterity that it amazes those who watch him, especially young children, who all shout, “Bravo, uncle, again, uncle!”
Pottery made in Talkha
Between the lines of Master Hamdi’s words, it became clear that each region specializes in or is famous for making a certain type of pottery. In his view, this is due first to the type of soil. Then to the customs of the people of the region. For example, the red clay of Talkha (as well as the western region) is extracted from the ruins of old houses, or “al-hadd,” then sifted and purified. It is then dried at a certain temperature and stored away from the sun. It is only suitable for water jugs, planting pots, and bird and pigeon supplies, such as waterers, feeders, and perches.
The Eastern Province is famous for the manufacture of water jugs. This is in contrast to the Upper Province, which specializes in the manufacture of clay pots. Thus, each region is almost independent in the manufacture of a type of pottery.
It began in Samannud… and returned to it
The craft began in Samannud, and it returned to it. This is a summary of what happened to the pottery industry in the city of Talkha, and how Al-Fakhura Street was transformed from a place teeming with potters, kilns, and “makan” (pottery wheels), and a sky filled with smoke from burning clay, to a mere market for selling pottery, which was no longer in demand, and trading in it was no longer profitable or at least sufficient to support families. The solution was either to travel abroad to work in the same profession or to stay and abandon it altogether. Thus, the pottery kilns of Talkha disappeared after a journey that lasted about 150 years.
