Native American Pottery | History of SC Slide Collection

One of the important skills of Native American women was their ability to make the clay pots that stored and cooked food. These were built up by coiling ropes of clay to form the shape, then smoothed and fired. The Native Americans contributed several important ingredients to the diet of the Europeans who were beginning to invade their coast. This drawing shows various stages of food preparation. One of the staple foods was maize, which we call "corn." (The word "corn" was the word the English used to describe all grains.) Fish and game may also have been simmering away in the pots. 

Courtesy of the South Caroliniana Library.

Standards

• This indicator was written to promote inquiry into the unique development of ethnic, political, and religious identities in the New England, Mid-Atlantic, and Southern colonies.
  • This indicator was developed to promote inquiry into how European colonization impacted the interaction among African, European, and Native American cultural groups.
• This indicator was designed to encourage inquiry into the geographic and human factors that contributed to the development of South Carolina’s economic system. This indicator was also written to encourage inquiry into South Carolina’s distinct social and economic system as influenced by British Barbados.
  • This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into Native American civilizations and cultures prior to European contact and their interactions with Europeans during the period of settlement and colonization, including their efforts to preserve the