The "Greatest Potter"

  Here on the Gulf Coast (and especially in Biloxi), we lay claim to one of the most unusual of potters.  Years ago, a man name George Ohr lived here and made his living as a potter.  At first, he made the usual utilitarian pots such as flower pots.  These earned a few pennies that he could use in buying food for his growing family but did not bring him fame.  Try as he might to make lovely flower pots, they were just that...flower pots.  Nothing fantastic about that.  It was in his mid to later years that suddenly he gained momentum with his business.  Things started booming for the fellow.  He started playing with odd designs and glazes.  Legend has it that he was mad, hence, the moniker of "George Ohr, the Mad Potter".  This was a self-proclaimed label and he bragged that "no two of his pots were alike".  His designs are touted as the forerunners of today's abstract works and, being relatively rare, are quite desired.  I do not own any of his fantastic works of art but rather a few of his utilitarian flower pots.  I am just as happy with these but to tell you just how folks think, I had to climb under our old farm house to retrieve these!  They are just flower pots even though now they sit on the shelf in my dining room.

 My potter of today is definitely not mad.  She is perhaps one of the greatest potters known, though.  I am referring to what is called a Potter Wasp.  This wasp is one of the group of Mason Wasps that are known to make mud nests.  Recently, I wrote about the Dirt Dauber which makes elongated mud nests but the Potter Wasp makes cute little pots.  Her nests are perfectly shaped clay urns with a flared neck and rim.  She will finish her urn, hunt and paralyze spiders (and insects), fill the urn and then lay a single egg inside.  After laying the egg, she will plug the top with a stopper of mud.  There, the egg will hatch and the larvae can munch away on the meals that Mom has provided.  When the larvae is mature and has changed to a wasp, it will gnaw a hole in the side of the urn and crawl out to continue life.

  This urn is one of the most interesting of nests and can certainly rival any human made clay pot.  The wasp's are uniform and sturdy enough to withstand the weather.  These marble-sized nests can last as long as a year if the larvae overwinters inside.  While most folks deem the nests as an eyesore on their window panes, I like them and will not remove them. Since the wasps, rid the place of so many spiders and since these wasps rarely sting, what is not to like about them?

  Now back to our eccentric Mr. Ohr.  To my way of thinking, the man was far from "mad"...more like, he was brilliant.  The "crazy" facade that he portrayed was merely a marketing ploy that worked...and worked well.  The masquerade of being a bit loony made folks interested in him and his works.  It became fashionable to own one of his pieces, therefore making them quite coveted.  He could charge more for demanded work.  Good move, Mr. Ohr!  I do admire your strategy.  You were, indeed, an astute businessman and a wonderfully eclectic artisan!  I salute you, Sir!