Terra Cotta

a kind of earthenware. The term is applied to building material of a finer quality than ordinary brick, and particularly to unglazed pottery. The vases for which the Greeks were famous were made of terra cotta. Terra cotta pottery is found in the remains of Assyrian and Persian buildings. The vases of Etruria, still recognized as models in art schools, were of this material. The Japanese still excel in making groups, vases, and urns of terra cotta. In architecture, terra cotta is used frequently to mold cornices, water spouts, and other portions to save the expense of carving them out of stone. It is gaining in favor for walls. It expands only half as much as glass. Typical terra cotta is of a pinkish hue. See Pottery; Brick