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UNESCO Peru and the Directorate of Intangible Heritage of the Ministry of Culture of Peru, with funding from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage of UNESCO, are developing the project “Strengthening and promoting the intergenerational transmission of knowledge and values related to the production of traditional ceramics in the rural community of Checca Pupuja”, which seeks to strengthen and promote the intergenerational transmission of knowledge, techniques and meanings of Checca Pupuja ceramics to new generations.

The ceramics of the Checca Pupuja community are recognized for their bulls and horses popularized as “Toro de Pucará”, due to the sale of these pieces at the Pucará train station, located 4 km from the community, in the province of Azángaro, Puno. The activity has been carried out since the end of the 19th century; however, currently, the knowledge related to traditional Checca Pupuja pottery is at high risk of disappearing due to limited transmission to younger generations.

As part of the project, a first stage of information gathering has been carried out with the participation of the Checca Pupuja community, in which the meanings and techniques that are still in use for the production of traditional ceramics have been identified.
Based on this information, the intergenerational transmission workshop of this activity is currently under development, which consists of 40 sessions and has 5 theoretical-practical modules that seek to generate a space for exchange and learning about the history, meanings, techniques and production that represent the collective memory of Checca Pupuja.

The workshop methodology has been developed with 3 master potters from the community: Alfredo Choque Cáceres; Ignacio Quispe Mayta; and Ignacio Choquehuanca Quispe. As part of this program, 12 young apprentices of traditional practice have visited two renowned potters: Franklin Mamani, in Pucará - Puno; and Tater Vera, in Cusco. These visits allowed the young people to learn about knowledge and techniques related to the production of traditional ceramics in other localities, innovation, trade strategies and craft promotion.
Roger Ramos Puma, one of the young apprentices in the project, says that his first approach to ceramics was through his relatives; however, during the internships he discovered new ways of working, “I have learned that wonderful things can be made from clay, and that has motivated me,” he says.

The project also includes the publication of training materials, which are being worked on in coordination with the UGEL Azángaro and the Decentralized Directorate of Culture of Puno, so that this teaching model can be replicated in different schools in the province of Azángaro, as well as serve as a guide for teaching other traditional practices in the Puno region.

As a final product of the Workshop for the intergenerational transmission of Checca Pupuja traditional ceramics, the young apprentices will develop ceramic pieces based on the new techniques learned. Thanks to the joint work with the Decentralized Management of Puno, these pieces will be presented in the framework of the Festivity of the Virgin of Candelaria in the Puno region. To this end, the project participants, apprentices and teachers, will be present in Puno on February 4 to present their final works to the corresponding authorities and the general public.