> [!NOTE]+ Meta > Author:: UNESCO > Reference:: UNESCO. (2025). Ñai'ũpo art, ancestral ceramic craftsmanship. _Intangible Cultural Heritage_. https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/nai-po-art-ancestral-ceramic-craftsmanship-02159 > Date:: 2025 > Tags:: #warp/article #Paraguay #ceramics > WeftLinks:: [[Cultural value of craft]] > Claim:: [[Claim - Craft strengthens relationships between members of a cultural group]] > [!SUMMARY] Summary > Ñai'ũpo is a traditional Paraguayan pottery craft that makes black cooking and eating vessels by hand using natural clay and wood firing. Women lead the craft and teach it orally in Guarani, passing tools and skills from elders to apprentices. The practice strengthens community ties, preserves cooking traditions, and involves men supporting material gathering and transport. ### Highlights Ñai'ũpo is a traditional ceramic craft that involves making blackish cooking and eating utensils by hand using natural materials and techniques that have been passed down through the generations. The ceramic craft is primarily led by women, with older women transmitting the knowledge and skills to their daughters or apprentices through hands-on practice and oral guidance in the Guarani language. The 'tacuara' tool, which is passed down from teacher to apprentice, symbolizes the process of knowledge transmission.