Ceramics of indigenous peoples of the Americas
The clay body is a necessary component of pottery. Clay must be mined and purified in an often laborious process, and certain tribes have ceremonial protocols to gathering clay. Different tribes have different processes for processing clay, which can include drying in the sun, soaking in water for days, and repeatedly running through a screen or sieve. Acoma and other Pueblo pottery traditionally pound dry clay into a powder and then remove impurities by hand, then running the dry powder through a screen, mixing it with a dry temper, and then mixing water to create a plastic paste. In preparing the clay, potters spend hours wedging it to remove air pockets and humidity that could easily cause it to explode during firing. The clay then needs to "cure" over time.
Crisson Mine
In 1969, the owners of Crisson Mine opened to the public to allow tourists to pan for gold. The ore sold for panning is still crushed by the stamp mill, which is now well over 100 years old. It's likely that panning the ore provided at the mine will yield small amounts of gold (flakes, specks, small nuggets).