Castandet pottery

The Castandet pottery was the ceramic production made in the town of Castandet (Landes, France), between the 15th and 20th centuries, mainly for utilitarian purposes.

History
Since the Middle Ages, three hamlets in Castandet, near Mont-de-Marsan, have been devoted to pottery as a means of exploiting the clay and marl in lands that were not very suitable for cultivation. Unlike other sites, the Castandet workshops did not specialise in the manufacture of a particular type of object : there, terracotta, along a minor touch of glaze, was used to make dishes and utensils for preparing, cooking or storing food or water, household items for hygiene or lighting, and tools for agricultural or craft work. This proto-industry, which encompassed an entire community, kept the peasants busy for part of the year, with the rest devoted to work in the fields or vineyards — some managed to make a living from pottery alone.

The commercial heyday of Castandet pottery came in the 18th century, with around sixty workshops. These products were sold at markets and fairs throughout the Landes region and beyond, and their use is well documented in much of Gascony. Competition from faience and less expensive regional earthenware products then affected the village's activity. The social situation of the potters deteriorated in the 19th century. The emergence of new metallic and plastic materials took their toll on utilitarian ceramics. The potters survived by making pots for resin extraction and artistic works until the middle of the 20th century, marking the total decline of the Castandet centre. After a period of neglect, the history of this local craft was rediscovered and studied from the 1980s onwards.