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A ''matki'' or ''matka'' (
Pani ka matka.jpg, A matka (big earthen pot) on roadside at Chinawal, India.
Jar,_Indus_Valley_Tradition,_Harappan_Phase,_Quetta,_Southern_Baluchistan,_Pakistan,_c._2500-1900_BC_-_Royal_Ontario_Museum_-_DSC09717.JPG,
A ''matki'' or ''matka'' (Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
and Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
: ''maṭkī'', ''maṭkā'') in South Asia is an earthen pot used as a home "water storage cooler". It has been in use since ancient times and can be found in houses of every social class.
Production
They are made by the combination of two types ofclay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...
: the first is taken from the surface of the earth and the second after digging more than 10 feet deeper into the earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
. Making a matka is a long process of at least 8 days. The clay is mixed with water, shaped, finished, polished, dried and fired in a kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or Chemical Changes, chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects m ...
for 5 days.
Modern designs are fitted with taps.
Cooling process
The cooling process works throughevaporative cooling
An evaporative cooler (also known as evaporative air conditioner, swamp cooler, swamp box, desert cooler and wet air cooler) is a device that cools air through the evaporation of water. Evaporative cooling differs from other air conditioning sy ...
. Capillary action causes water to evaporate from the mini-pores in the pot, taking the heat from the water inside, thus making the water inside cooler than the outside temperature. Hence it is used only during summer and not in winter.
Gallery
Indus Valley civilization
The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation, was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE ...
pot from Harappan phase found at Quetta
Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...
in Baluchistan
Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region of de ...
, c. 2500-1900 BC, displayed at Royal Ontario Museum
The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...
.
Clay_pots_in_punjab_pakistan.JPG, Clay pots in Punjab in Pakistan.
File:Matki Ritual.jpg, Decorating matkis prior to a wedding
See also
*Kulhar
A ''kulhar'' (Hindustani language, Hindi: कुल्हड़ and Urdu: کلہڑ) or ''kulhad'', ''matir bhar'' () or simply ''bhar'' (), sometimes called a ''shikora'', is a traditional handleless pottery cup from South Asia that is typically ...
* Matka gambling
* Mashk
* Indian pottery
* Goatskin (material)
Goatskin refers to the skin of a goat, which by long term usage, is denoted by the term ''Morocco leather''. Kidskin, used for gloves, shoes and other accessories, is traditionally goatskin, although other leathers such as sheep and kangaroo can ...
* Head-carrying
Carrying on the head is a common practice in many parts of the world as an alternative to carrying a burden on the back, shoulders and so on. People have carried burdens balanced on top of the head since ancient times, usually to do daily work, bu ...
* Oven glove
An oven glove, also commonly known as an oven mitt, is a thermal insulation, thermal insulated glove or mitten usually worn in the kitchen to easily protect the wearer's hand from hot objects such as ovens, stoves, Cookware and bakeware, cookware ...
* Pot-holder
A potholder is a piece of textile (often quilted) or silicone used to cover the hand when holding hot kitchen cooking equipment, like pots and pans. They are frequently made of polyester and/or cotton. Crocheted potholders can be made out of co ...
* Trivet
A trivet is an object placed between a serving dish, bowl, pot, or pan and a dining table, usually to protect the table from heat damage. The word ''trivet'' refers to three feet, but the term is sometimes used in British English to refer to t ...
* Tumpline
A tumpline () is a strap attached at both ends to a sack, backpack, or other luggage and used to carry the object by placing the strap over the top of the head. This utilizes the spine rather than the shoulders as standard backpack straps do. ...
References
Containers Indian pottery Pakistani pottery Pottery shapes {{india-culture-stub