Ceramics Saggar Firing

This hands on technique will help all potter.

Ceramics saggar firing.

A saggar is a type of kiln furniture. To contain fumes around a pot so that the pot to picks up color from the fumes saggars are the lidded containers used to contain and isolate pots during a saggar firing. Ceramic artist brenda mcmahon shows how to wrap a pot in a paper clay saggar in preparation for a saggar firing. Saggar is a container used during the firing process to enclose or protect ware being fired inside a kiln.

Saggar firing is the method of creating confined atmospheres within a container or saggar. Saggars have been used to protect or safeguard ware from open flame smoke gases and kiln debris. The saggar takes the abuse of rapid thermal changes. I put a bed of materials on the bottom of the saggar and place small crucibles made of clay containing salt around the bottom.

Then i either place the pot in and gently put other materials around the side of the pot or wrap and tie materials in place around the pot using copper wire reed or even string and then place it into the saggar. Traditionally saggars were made primarily from fireclay. The name may be a contraction of the word safeguard. It is a ceramic boxlike container used in the firing of pottery to enclose or protect ware being fired inside a kiln traditionally saggars were made primarily from fireclay.

Saguaros have been used to protect or safeguard ware from open fire smoke gases and kiln debris. Originally saggars were used to protect the finish from the debris flying around the firing chamber from the wood or coal fuel source. This excerpt came from our book naked raku and related bare clay techniques which is available in the ceramic arts shop. Here is a non exclusive list of colorants for pit firing or to be used inside of a saggar.

Because the saggar protects the pot while firing it is not important to have a clay body that withstands the thermal shock of raku firing.