Biljana DJORDJEVIĆ, Dragoljub ZLATKOVIĆ

TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED

IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA
MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Abstract: The first ethnographic researches of a most The bread-baking pan (crepulja, crepnja)
archaic method applied in making ceramic vessels – a clay vessel used primarily for bread
– making of bread-baking pans without potter’s baking on the open fire – is one of
wheel – started at the beginning of the last century. In the most archaic objects of traditional
the beginning of the 1950s a substantial body of this pottery production characteristic for
knowledge was put together in the comprehensive rural households with open fireplaces,
study of Milenko Filipović Primitive Ceramics made by not only in Serbia, but in the wider area
Women among the Balkan Peoples. Nonetheless, the of South-East Europe.2 Bread baking is
technological process of the so-called “treading of bread- a traditional part of female activities
baking pans” still remains largely unknown primarily due in the household as well as making
to the lack of illustrative material so important in this bread-baking pans. “This is women’s
case. The fact that this activity is part of women’s duties obligatory work, the same as knitting
in rural households in mainly road-less areas indicates stockings, weaving, washing, kneading
its possible antiquity which makes it interesting for and cooking”, says Petar Ž. Petrović,
ethnoarchaeology. Ethnoarchaeological research carried one of the first investigators
out in the Stara Planina area in the recent years has in this area (Petrović 1936: 21).
provided information about local variations in bread- Therefore, the making of bread-baking
baking pans making. The importance of diversity in pans and other clay objects of the
technological procedures is discussed in this paper. “hearth set”3 is known as female
pottery (Filipović 1951).
Key words: bread-baking pan, hand-made pottery,
This activity, abandoned by the mid-
pottery technology, ethnoarchaeology
twentieth century, was sporadically
carried out in relatively closed village
environments. Since adaptability to the
clay used was required, numerous local
Every home has its own customs,
variants were present in the making
not to speak of a village1
of bread-baking pans both in relation
to technological procedures and to
the customs and rituals occasionally
associated with their production.4
1 These words of a woman, a bread-baking pan
maker from Macedonia (Filipović 1951: 2) served
as motivation for our in-depth research of bread-
baking pans making on the Stara Planina Mountain, 2 This activity was also present until mid-20th century
located in the easternmost part of Serbia on the in mountain areas of Rumania, Bulgaria, Macedonia,
Serbian-Bulgarian border. In order to provide as Greece, Albania and Montenegro (Zlatković 2009: 73-
much as possible information about this very archaic 80; Tomić 1983: 18; Mojsić 1936: 48-50; Trifunovski
pottery technology, through the Project “Crepulja/ 1978: 127-132; Chausidis, Nikolov 2006: 97-160;
crepna from the Neolithic until present times in Efstratiou 1992: 311-327; Vukmanović 1937).
South-East Europe: Utilitarian and ritual functions”,
3 By “hearth set” I mean: bread-baking pan, bread-
an international project of the National Museum in
baking cover and hearth supports (see Djordjević
Belgrade and the Museum of Macedonia in Skopje
2011: 7-31).
(Djordjević, Nikolov 2013: 53-57), our Serbian
team (B. Djordjević, A. Djordjević and D. Zlatković), 4 More about customs and rituals connected with
interviewed 77 persons, mostly women, in 36 villages bread-baking pan making in this Proceedings by
during the 2009–2011 investigation campaign. Dragoljub Zlatković.

32
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
The term female pottery implies, “those
kinds of pottery work and products
which involve the work of women, only
rarely in cooperation with men: women
dig the clay, women prepare it, women
manually shape products without the
potter’s wheel, women dry and bake
them” (Filipović 1951).
Time of year
This kind of pottery-making is carried
out mainly during warm weather
periods, i.e. in spring or early autumn,
when there are no major agricultural
activities. This gives time for the bread-
baking pans to dry well before being
used for the first time. This activity is
often connected to church festivals, but
not always and not everywhere.
Holidays/Church festivals
Holy Trinity week (7th Week after Pentecost)
Holy Trinity week or The Holy Martyr Vitus
(7th Week after Pentecost or 28th June)
The Holy Prophet Elisha (27th June)
The Holy Prophet Elisha or The Holy Martyr Vitus
(27-28th June)
The Holy Martyr Vitus (28th June)
The Holy Apostles Peter and Paul (12th July)
Between The Dormition of the Most Holy Mother
of God and The Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of
God (28th August – 21st September)
The Beheading of St John the Baptist
(11th September)
Table 1
The time of year for making bread-baking pans
The participation of men
The participation of men is sporadic. In
sixteen cases, interviewees cited a strict
prohibition for men and only in four
cases mentioned male participation:
in three cases with respect to help in
digging and transportation of clay and
only in one case with clay treading.
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
Group work
The number of women in the group
for treading of bread-baking pans
also differs from village to village, and
very often within the village itself. The
formation of the group can change
over time, notably with generational
change as daughters take over the job
from their mothers or upon marriage –
young women joining the group into
which they are married. During our
investigations, 48 interviewed persons
gave 18 different answers concerning
the number of women participating in
crepulja treading (Table 2). This number
varies between 1 and 10 women
according to need, as well as the
availability of raw materials and other
factors that affect the efficiency of the
Favorable days
independent of holidays
9 Early Spring 1
2 Spring 5
8 End of Spring 2
2 Spring and Summer 2
23 Summer 1
2 End of Summer, Early Autumn 2
1 Autumn 2
1 Nice weather regardless of the season 6
process of manufacture. Most of the
respondents gave the answer that the
group consisted of 5-6 women (10), 3-4
women (7) or 4-5 women (6). The lack
of exactitude regarding numbers of
women is significant. In 13 villages
(29 cases) the interviewees did not
provide any answer about the number
of women in the group, focusing
instead on the age and marital status of
women potters.
33
 5,7 or 9

cca. 10
Village and

Dif. gr.

No inf.
2-4 >

3-4-5

3-5-6

5-10
3+3
1-2

2-3

2-4

3-4

3-5

4-5

5-6

5-7
2

5
the no. of respon.

1 Bela (4) -
2 Berovica (1) -
3 Boljev Do (1) -
4 Brlog (4) — —— 2
5 Čiringlavci (1) -
6 Dobri Do (3) — — 2
7 Dojkinci (7) — — —— — 4
8 D. Krivodol (2) —— 1
9 G. Krivodol (1) -
10 Gostuša (9) — — —— — — 4
11 Gulenovci (1) — 1
12 Izatovci (1) -
13 Jelovica (1) -
14 K-ću (1) -
15 Kamenica (1) — 1
16 Koprivštica (1) -
17 Krupac (1) -
18 Lukanjske p. (1) -
19 Mazgoš (1) — 1
20 Mojinci (1) -
21 Oreovica (1) — 1
22 Pakleštica (5) — — — 3
23 Petrlaš (1) — 1
24 Poganovo (1) — 1
25 Pokrevenik (3) — —— 2
26 Protopopinci (1) — — 2
27 Rosomač (4) —— —— 2
28 Rsovci (2) — 1
29 Senokos (2) — 1
30 Slavinja (2) — 1
31 Smilovci (1) -
32 Topli Do (2) — — 2
33 Vel. Lukanja (6) — — — 3
34 Vis. Odorov. (4) — 1
35 Zaskovci (1) — 1
36 Zavoj (2) — — 2
Total 2 1 2 3 1 1 7 2 3 1 1 6 1 10 3 2 1 1

Table 2
The number of women participating in crepulja treading

34
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
Technological process
The crepulja making process can take
one to several days. This depends on
the distance and accessibility of clay
sources but also on the characteristics
of the available clay.
The making or treading of female
bread-baking pans (crepulje), has three
stages of technological process:
1. Digging, transferring of clay and
preparation of clay for treading;
2. Treading of clay until it becomes a
plastic paste;
3. Shaping of the clay body, initial
drying and baking of bread, i.e.
“baking” of the bread-baking pans.
Digging clay
The search for an adequate clay source
is the first step in the production
process. Sources usually lie in the
vicinity of villages, sometimes within
the village, although some may be
several kilometres away. A village may
use clay from various sources, which
can create local differences in the clay
preparation process (Pl. II/1).
Clay was extracted from its source by
digging. To reach good quality clay
sometimes required digging holes
several metres deep. Clay would be
taken back in bags and sacks which
people carried either on their shoulders
or on horses and carts. The means
of transportation depended on the
accessibility of the clay source but
also on the nature of transport
availabile (Pl. II/2).
The best clay sources on the Stara
Planina Mountain are in the village
areas of Visočki Odorovci, Moinci,
Senokos, Rosomač, Dojkinci, Velike
Lukanje, Zavoj, Pokrevenik and Topli Do
(Pl. II – map). Crepulja makers describe
the clay as: reddish without a trace of
35
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
white clay and sand; reddish with traces
of white clay; reddish with traces of “fat”
clay; white clay; white-yellowish clay;
greenish clay; “fat” clay; sandy clay, etc.5
Mixing clay from two or three sites is
often carried out making it possible to
achieve the desired plasticity of clay.6
Having collected the clay, the process
of making bread-baking pans starts
with clay preparation before treading
can take place, the place for which
could be just a flat surface – on a
meadow or at the side of a road, or in
a woman’s courtyard. The choice of
the place depends on local tradition
(Pl. II/3). The clay was first dried and
broken up, sometimes sieved and
cleaned of any impurity which could
affect the modelling. The cleaning
process – indispensable for any kind
of clay work regardless of techniques
applied – would start during the
mining process by removing bigger
stones and roots and would continue
during treading. The dried, cleaned clay
would then be spread out or gathered
in heaps on flat surfaces, and water
poured over it. The water could be
either warm or cold depending on the
specific characteristics of the clay used.
The “ageing“ of clay could last from one
hour to several days.
Treading of bread-baking pans involves:
• Work in groups, mostly threes
or any other odd number of
female participants from diferent
households;7
• Treading of prepared clay;
• Adding of temper;
5 The exact composition of clays is still unknown. It will
be part of our future investigation.
6 A mixture of different types of clay is a common
procedure in the work of professional potters. In this
way the characteristics of the raw material improves.
7 We find one exception, in the village Petrlaš, where
only female members of one family participated in
the treading of bread-baking pans.
 • Treading of clay with temper (over
one to several days);
• Adding water during treading (cold
or hot), usually by making a hole
from the top to the bottom of the
pile, or pouring over a pile without a
hole;
• Overnight overing of clay during its
preparation with large leaves of plant
called čobanka, or with sheets;
• Beating of clay during preparation
(only exceptionally).
Pure clay was not used for bread-
baking pans. Goat or horse hair, pig

Tempers No.
Oakum 10
Straw 7
horse dung 1
Fig. 1
oakum + goat hair 7
Reconstruction of the treading of clay
oakum + cow dung 2
for bread-baking pans
goat hair + cow dung 1
goat hair + straw 1 clay composition and availability of
oakum + hair 1 adequate tempers. All ingredients had
goat hair + hair 2 to be crushed first (Table 3).
oakum + straw 2
Groups of women would usually tread
pig hair + straw 1
the clay moving in circles as if dancing,
oakum + goat hair + straw 12
in slow and rhythmic steps using one
oakum + goat hair + cow dung 1
oakum + goat hair + pig hair 4
leg to tread the clay and the other to
oakum + pig hair + straw 2
lean on. After a time the clay would
oakum + pig hair + horse hair 3
be turned over, gathered into a heap
oakum + straw + salt 1
and the whole procedure would be
oakum + goat hair + straw + dung 5 repeated. In many cases clay was
oakum + goat hair + straw + salt 2 trodden an uneven number of times,
oakum + goat hair + pig hair + straw 2 most often nine (Fig. 1).
oakum + goat hair + horse hair + straw 1 The prepared clay body would then
oakum + goat hair + cow dung + salt 2 be divided into a number of lumps
oakum + goat hair + pig hair + straw + cow dung 1
equalling the number of women
oakum + goat hair + horse hair + cow hair + straw 1
engaged. Each of them would then
Table 3 goat hair + horse hair + pig hair + human hair + straw + salt 1
transfer her lump to the place where
Temper combinations nothing 2
the bread-baking pans would be
modelled. Only experienced women
bristles, oakum, straw, chaff, dung would model the clay, carrying out the
and even salt were used as tempering entire process by hand, without any
materials. These additions were often tools. The clay body for the pans was
combined. Combinations were many first shaped flat as a pie. The rim was
and depended in the first place on the then built by holding the edge of the

36
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
 After forming, the pans would be left
to dry, with the drying process last
from several days to several months.
The decision whether the pans would
be sun dried, put in a room with strong
air circulation or with no circulation
at all depended primarily on the
characteristics of the clay. In some
villages during the first few days of
drying, the pan was coated with a slip
of cow-dung in order to avoid cracking
of the vessel.
Bread-baking pans were not fired
before their first use. Their first use was
actually the beginning of their firing.
Before being used, the inside of bread-
baking pan was turned towards the Fig. 3
hearth, placed on supports and heated Hand position during
Fig. 2 on a ”big fire“ or in hot embers until the modelling of bread-
Reconstruction of the modelling process the pan whitened (Pl. II/5). This was baking pans
perhaps the most delicate moment
flat base with one hand and with the of the process. If the woman was not
other one pulling or pushing clay from experienced enough, the pan would
the centre to the edge so as to form break during the first heating. Once
the incipient frame or wall of a bread- broken, the pans were not restored, but
baking pan (Fig. 2). One palm would were discarded.
either be open or forming a fist8 (Fig. 3).
Pan dimensions were not standardised
or uniform. The size of the bread-baking
pan was decided by its maker and
depended on household needs, with
a range of diameters from 25 cm to 60
cm, wall thicknesses from 3 cm to 5 cm
and heights from 7 cm to 13 cm. The
finished pan would be then burnished
by wet hands using clean water or
was coated with fine silt. This could
also be done with hydrated dung. The
only decoration on bread-baking pans,
though not on all, is the finger-printed
cross on the bottom. Its purpose is
more symbolically protective than
decorative (Pl. II/4). Fig. 4
The bread-baking
cover-vršnik
8 Only seldom wall of a pan would be made by adding
a coil and pressing it into the bottom.
Statement given by a women we interviewed in the
village Dojkinci.

37
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković

Fig. 5 The bread-baking cover, or vršnik,
made of the same clay as the pans
Reconstruction of
a bread-baking pan on themselves, mostly known from
supports over the hearth
ethnographic records, appears to have
been replaced by iron covers called
sač, a long time ago, bearing in mind
that none of interviewed persons in the
region of Stara Planina Mt. remembered
having made clay lids (Fig. 4).
There was another interesting object
made out of the same clay and in the
same time period as the bread-baking
pans. The object was a support – pop,
popovčić or topka – most often shaped
as a truncated cone, its purpose being
to provide support for the bread-baking
Fig. 6
Supports – pop,
popovčić, topka
38
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
pan or any vessel placed on the hearth
(Fig. 5). Three kinds used to be made,
their form being almost identical to the
loom weights although their function
was quite different (Fig. 6).
Besides bread-baking pans and
supports, which could be defined as
a set, in this area clay was used for
making ovens as well. All households
of reasonable size on the Stara Planina
Mountain have a bread oven (Pl. II/6).
The capacity of such ovens is about
ten loafs of bread, covering weekly
consumption. The construction of
the traditional oven was very archaic:
support for the arch is made of elm
wood, or more rarely hazel wood, with
the bottom side coated with a thick
layer of clay; following the burning of
brushwood the dome of baked clay
remains. They were made by men and
women, but in recent decades have
been replaced by brick bread-ovens
made by men.
Bread-baking pans can be considered
to be one of the most archaic forms
of utilitarian pottery whose shape has
remained almost unchanged from the
prehistoric period until present times in
the Balkan region.
Only a small part of the finds of such
materials from archaeological sites has
been published so far, since the bread-
baking pans, being chronologically
insensitive items, have not been of
great interest for cultural history-
oriented researchers. This has resulted
in a lack of information about bread-
baking pans from the archaeological
record, presenting a significant problem
for researchers of pottery technology.
***
The results of our research illustrate
the statement that served as the
motto of this paper: Every home has its
own customs, not to speak of a village.
Precisely because of that we can not
consider the investigation complete.
This is demonstrated by the lack of
data related to some issues. Future
interviews of the same respondents
could provide detailed information
with new data. It would also be an
opportunity to check the previously-
obtained statements. We should not
forget that the making of bread-
baking pans is a skill that has not been
practiced for almost half a century, so
the data obtained from respondents
are based only on memories, which can
be deceptive.
As the main conclusions of this research
we can confirm the importance of
investigating traditional pottery
technology in Europe at the local level.
Only ethnoarchaeological pottery
39
TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
investigations conducted in the same
areas occupied by communities from
the past studied archaeologically
could provide relevant models of the
dynamics of the past, bearing in mind
the consistent environmental context,
the same clay resources and the same
or similar climatic conditions. The
fact that the clay sources available to
producers in many ways dictate the
mode of production, as shown by these
investigations, alienates us from being
able to make cross-cultural conclusions
using examples from other continents,
where different environmental
conditions, different resources and
different climatic conditions apply.
The variety of procedures used in
the production process of bread-
baking pans demonstrates the limits
imposed by clay materials, as well as
opportunities presented to the users.
The balance between these restrictions
and possibilities must be deciphered
in order to formulate dynamic models
of the past with respect to pottery
making.
Drawings by:
Bojana Dimitrovski
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Čausidis, N., Nikolov, G., Crepna
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DJORDJEVIĆ, NIKOLOV 2013

Djordjević, B., Nikolov, G., The
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crepna) from the Neolithic to the
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DJORDJEVIĆ 2011
Djordjević, B., Three facets of
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Efstratiu, N., Production and
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FILIPOVIĆ 1951
Филиповић, M., Женска керамика
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TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
MOJSIĆ 1936
Мојсић, И., О изради црепуља
у Џвану у околини Крушева
у Јужној Србији, Прилози
проучавању наше народне
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Томић, П., Грнчарство у Србији,
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Вукмановић, J. Л., О изради
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Златковић, Д. Израда црепуља
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TRADITIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND ITS VARIATIONS APPLIED IN MAKING BREAD-BAKING PANS IN THE STARA PLANINA MOUNTAIN (SERBIA)
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković
Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković * PLATE II
Traditional technology and its variations applied
in making bread-baking pans in the Stara Planina Mountain (Serbia)

Pl. II /1
Clay mine in the village Gostuša

Pl. II /2
Carrying clay on the shoulders
in the village Gostuša

Pl. II /map
Map of the Stara Planina Mountain and the
36 villages that participated in the project

190
 Biljana Djordjević, Dragoljub Zlatković * PLATE II
Traditional technology and its variations applied
in making bread-baking pans in the Stara Planina Mountain (Serbia)

Pl. II/3
Spaska Jovanović from Gostuša
showing the place used for
treading in the courtyard

Pl. II/4
Finger printed cross at the bottom of a
bread-baking pan from Pokrevenik

Pl. II /5 Pl. II /6
A bread-baking pan on a ”big fire“ at Gostuša A bread oven with bread-baking pan upon it (Gostuša)

191