Literally 'baked earth' or 'baked clay'; fired clay which is incompletely fired and still porous. It is used to make artifacts such as vessels, figurines, tablets, spindle whorls, loom weights, or net sinkers. It is a material from which much ancient pottery and other fired clay objects were made. It is also found as a structural material in hearths and kilns, where the clay of which they were built has been baked in use. A special variety of terra-cotta called 'daub' was produced only by accidental burning. Today, the term is applied to statuary, building materials, etc. rather than the better fired modern pottery.