Centro de Interpretación Las Loceras de El Cercado
Interpretation centre in El Cercado on traditional Gomera pottery, handmade from collecting the clay to firing.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
El Cercado, in the municipality of Vallehermoso next to Chipude, is considered the main pre-Columbian pottery centre of La Gomera. A pottery tradition of pre-Hispanic origin survives there: it is shaped by hand without a potter's wheel and is worked mainly by women, the loceras. The clay, called masapé, was worked with minimal tools, such as a rounded stone and a strip of metal from a barrel hoop, and the pieces were smoked for several days in the kitchen of the house-workshop before being fired.
Among the best-known pieces is the carabucho, a two-handled vessel for milking goats. Others include gánigos, tofios, carvings, earthenware pots (tiestos) and braziers, which were often exchanged for food and other necessities. Figures such as Guadalupe Niebla Chinea, who organised a cooperative workshop in 1981, helped keep the craft alive.
To promote this tradition, the Las Loceras de El Cercado interpretation centre and information point was opened in 2009, in the centre of the village. The visit explains each step of the work, from gathering the raw material to firing in a wood-fired oven, with interactive panels, pieces on display and explanatory videos.
Highlights
- Traditional Gomera pottery, shaped by hand without a wheel
- Tour of the whole process, from gathering the clay to firing in a wood-fired oven
- Interactive panels, pieces on display and explanatory videos
- Typical pieces such as the carabucho, a two-handled milking vessel
- Information point in the centre of the village of El Cercado
Permanent exhibition
- La alfarería tradicional de La Gomera – Permanent exhibition with interactive panels, pottery pieces and videos explaining the craft process, from extracting the clay to firing in a wood-fired oven.
- Founded
- 2009
Admission & discounts
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Accessibility
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Kids & families
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Getting there & parking
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Amenities & dining
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Events & venue rental
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Plan your visit
| Photography | Do not use flash when photographing the pieces, as it can damage them. |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Visitors are asked not to eat in the exhibition rooms, to use the bins and to keep noise levels low. |
