A Hlai House in Tongzha - Utensils

 

Basketware and Pottery

If you look at the interior shots of the house, you can see various utensils, traditional and modern. Here are a few shots of some of the more beautiful specimens of woven baskets and pottery.

While I was told the use of these utensils at the time, I now have no recollection whatsoever what most of them were used for.

The two shots below are rather blurry views of very attractive objects.

Hlai pottery is relatively thin and has a peculiarly metallic feel and sound. The utensils below were found in the kitchen.

Hlai pottery is not well known, but it should be. From what I understand, it preserves the oldest pottery-making techniques in existence, dating back thousands of years. One day these pots may be worth a lot of money!

The dirty old hat was actually put on top of the pot to protect it.

The owner also brought out this piece of traditional Hlai clothing, worn by the men in the fields. He even tried it on for us!

That is the end of our tour of the Hlai houses outside Tongzha. While it is far from satisfactory in terms of informational content, I hope it may at least inspire more people to take an interest in the traditional culture of this ethnic group in Hainan.