IMPORTANCE

It cannot be understated just how much of an important role clay played in the history of human development. From agriculture, to writing systems and art, the many uses and benefits of clay in various aspects of early human development is astonishing. It helped early humans move from hunter-gatherer societies into agrarian societies, which allowed for focus to shift and more emphasis was put on new discoveries, cultural developments, and so forth.

CLAY

Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals. Clay minerals are silicate, alumina and magnesia. Pure clay minerals are white or very light in colour however, natural clays can come in a variety of colours. Clay will over time, with geological changes, interact with other minerals such as iron, zinc, copper, cobalt and as well as plant and animal matter which will all ultimately contribute to its specific colour.

GAOLING MOUNTAIN

Gaoling Mountain, or “Tall Hill”, transcribed from Chinese to French in the 18th century as “Kaolin” is the name of the mountain in Jiangxi province, China where the clay was originally discovered by the ancient Chinese. A village was founded on the mountain and the area surrounding the village became the main supplier of Kaolin clay throughout China during the Qing dynasty.

ASMR

ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) is a physical and psychological experience that combines pleasant and relaxing sensations in response to certain stimuli. The most common association with ASMR is auditory, but it can also include visual and tactile. Our Kaolin white clay has the cleanest, most audible crack we’ve ever had the pleasure of hearing. So perk up your ears and get ready for a delightful auditory experience.

VARIETIES

We offer our Kaolin White clay in two varieties, chunks and flakes.

Once mined, our clay goes through one simple process before being inspected, packaged and shipped for distribution. The process only affects the physical shape of the clay, and it involves crushing large pieces of mined clay into more manageable fragments for your convenience. The flakes go through the same process only to a finer degree. Once crushed, the clay is left to dry, and once dried it’s ready to go!

NATURA URALIS

At Natura Uralis we are dedicated to only finding and bringing you all natural products!

We set our highest values and priorities to only bring you products that are naturally occurring, without additives and/or impurities, and with minimal to no processing. Before any of our products go out for sale, they are carefully inspected to meet our highest standards, and your expectations!

• ALL NATURAL
• VELVETY
• EARTHY
• EPIC ASMR

HISTORY

The use of clay was likely discovered independently in various places…

The earliest-known clay objects are figurines, discovered at Dolní Věstonice in modern-day Czechia. The Venus of Dolní Věstonice is a statuette of a female dated to 29,000 – 25,000 BC. Ancient vessels have been discovered in the Xianrendong Cave in the Jiangxi province of China that date back to 20,000 BC. The ancient Mesopotamians adopted clay tablets as the one of the first known writing mediums. The use and discovery of clay cannot be attributed to one civilisation alone. It was a global effort by all our ancestors.

AIRING

Due to the porous nature of clay, it can absorb odours from the air fairly easily. If you don’t want your clay to smell of your gym bag, we suggest you air it out in a dry, well-ventilated environment, or simply take it outside for a few hours.

WETTING

If you prefer a slightly more damp and earthy tactile experience, akin to a fresh morning dew on a mountaintop meadow, try putting your clay in a bowl or water or spray it lightly. The water will soften the clay and really bring out that velvety smooth texture.

BAKING

If you want the clay to crack even harder than before, or you left it outside overnight and it rained, don’t fret - bake it! Throw a few chunks or some flakes in the oven for 30 minutes on medium to high heat, and you’ll be good to go!