Pottery is one of the oldest crafts known to humankind. It played an important role in the life of the people inhabiting the Bulgarian lands in ancient times too. Archaeologists have evidence that the Thracians knew the manual potter's wheel even in the early Iron Age. The intensive cultural and commercial contacts with Ancient Greece at that time explain the influence of Hellenic arts and crafts on Thracian pottery.

The Thracian tradition diversified as the Slavs and Proto-Bulgarians settled in these lands. Painted Preslav ceramics from the second half of the 9th and early 10th century is a remarkable part of the history of certamics. Prechina ceramics, the first of its kind in Europe, was brought to Bulgaria by artisans from the Middle East. Ceramic facing tiles made in those parts of Europe sold all over the continent. Pottery flourished in the 12th to 14th centuries. Sgraffito ceramic appeared: glazed, double-baked pottery decorated with geometrical and floral motifs and, occasionally, human and animal figures. The predominant colours were green, yellow and brown.

Pottery declined in the first centuries after the Ottoman conquest (late 14th century) - only to recoover in the 18th and 19th centuries. There were potters in practically all bigger population centres: Gabrovo, Boussintsi, Aitos, Pirot and elsewhere.

Pottery covered the whole range from kitchen utensils (pots, baking dishes) to tableware (bowls, dishes), ritual vessels (wedding juds) and farming Items. The decoration depended on the shape and purpose of the piece. Wedding and ritual vassels had the richest decoration. Linear multicoloured patterns on bare or wholly glazed claywere the favourite technique. Relief rosettes, flowers and animal figures were also popular. The glazing varied in colour. Pottery is onoeof the richest legacies of the Bulgarian people. A legacy that blends century-long tradition with a flair for beauty and original taste.