slip

pottery material

Also known as: barbotine

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 17, 2026

Quick Summary

carved bowl Carved bowl, slip-painted ceramic from Oaxaca, Mexico, 300 bce–200ce; in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Slip is a semiliquid clay, or barbotine, used in pottery. Originally, it was applied as a wash to cover defects in body color before firing. Over time, slip became a versatile decorative element, enabling techniques like sgraffito (incising through slip to reveal underlying color), slip carving, painting, trailing, marbling, and inlay.1

Slip painting was used in ancient Egyptian pottery and North American Indian wares. Trailing slip creates designs in lines of contrasting color, similar to cake icing. Marbling effects are achieved by mingling slips of different colors. In Korea, slip is used for the mishima inlay technique, where incised designs are filled with colored slip.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Barbotine ware
…pottery decorated with a clay slip applied by means of a technique first employed on Rhenish pottery prior to the 3rd century ad. The slip was applied by piping, in the same way icing is applied to cakes. It was used to adorn the edges of flat dishes with such…
Read More
…pottery decorated with a clay slip applied by means of a technique first employed on Rhenish pottery prior to the 3rd century ad. The slip was applied by piping, in the same way icing is applied to cakes. It was used to adorn the edges of flat dishes with such…
Read More

pâte-sur-pâte
…applying successive layers of white slip (liquid clay) with a brush. The technique was first employed by the Chinese in the 18th century. It was introduced in Europe in about 1850 at Sèvres, where it was perfected by Marc-Louis Solon, who later worked for Minton. The technique was also used…
Read More
…applying successive layers of white slip (liquid clay) with a brush. The technique was first employed by the Chinese in the 18th century. It was introduced in Europe in about 1850 at Sèvres, where it was perfected by Marc-Louis Solon, who later worked for Minton. The technique was also used…
Read More

slipware
…another, with semiliquid clay, or slip, sometimes called barbotine. Originally, defects of body colour suggested the use of slip, either white or coloured, as a wash over the vessel before firing. The decorative uses of slip later evolved include sgraffito and carving, painting, trailing, marbling, and inlay.
Read More
…another, with semiliquid clay, or slip, sometimes called barbotine. Originally, defects of body colour suggested the use of slip, either white or coloured, as a wash over the vessel before firing. The decorative uses of slip later evolved include sgraffito and carving, painting, trailing, marbling, and inlay.
Read More