Rats Made With Love In Belarusian Ceramics Factory
A glimpse inside a Belarusian business that makes souvenir animals from clay.
![A ceramic rat gets his snout dabbed with paint.](https://gdb.rferl.org/1e181702-4506-41e0-85b4-c1e0f975654e_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A ceramic rat gets his snout dabbed with paint.
![Long-nosed rodents taking shape under a potter’s fingers.](https://gdb.rferl.org/1e07072c-d733-4299-862b-78dbbabfbfc6_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Long-nosed rodents taking shape under a potter’s fingers.
![These scenes of ratty genesis were captured inside the Belkhudozhkeramika ceramics factory in the Minsk region. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/ee57d793-b495-49b8-abf9-b7c442469370_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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These scenes of ratty genesis were captured inside the Belkhudozhkeramika ceramics factory in the Minsk region.
![The factory is located in a small town north of Minsk.](https://gdb.rferl.org/7258806a-98fb-4774-b34b-654f09ddcfea_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The factory is located in a small town north of Minsk.
![The entrance of the business, which opened its doors to Belarusian photojournalist Natalia Fedosenko on November 21. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/d5cec039-a00c-4c2e-8c53-088851a2d42e_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The entrance of the business, which opened its doors to Belarusian photojournalist Natalia Fedosenko on November 21.
![A vessel is shaped on a potter’s wheel inside the factory.](https://gdb.rferl.org/48e80c59-c74a-484a-bd16-e806b87aca02_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A vessel is shaped on a potter’s wheel inside the factory.
![A worker carries clay pots that await firing in a kiln and a painter’s touch.](https://gdb.rferl.org/f19e844e-16d1-4105-ac0b-1a2e7b1149f2_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A worker carries clay pots that await firing in a kiln and a painter’s touch.
![The Belkhudozhkeramika factory opened in 1940 to make simple consumer products, like plates and mugs, from a deposit of high-quality clay in eastern Belarus.](https://gdb.rferl.org/cac8cccc-ce01-4d49-86e8-1816254e5e88_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The Belkhudozhkeramika factory opened in 1940 to make simple consumer products, like plates and mugs, from a deposit of high-quality clay in eastern Belarus.
![More recently, the factory has focussed on high-end decorative pottery…](https://gdb.rferl.org/8a804c69-b94f-47c0-ae76-cc47fe3be8ed_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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More recently, the factory has focussed on high-end decorative pottery…
![…and endearing porcelain rats.](https://gdb.rferl.org/ac23b2bb-36ae-4b49-a6b9-c45bad436d3f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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…and endearing porcelain rats.
![After the clay is molded and dried, the rats are fired in a roaring kiln that heats up to more than 720 degrees Celsius.](https://gdb.rferl.org/dc951678-5f72-4221-8d2e-ac69b6785d6a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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After the clay is molded and dried, the rats are fired in a roaring kiln that heats up to more than 720 degrees Celsius.
![The factory makes numerous other animal souvenirs.](https://gdb.rferl.org/3b6fa38f-d0a0-4519-abdb-80aa53f4e138_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The factory makes numerous other animal souvenirs.
![But during photographer Fedosenko’s visit, this rat pack stole the show.](https://gdb.rferl.org/bc69f268-b01b-4900-b280-643a51b3de08_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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But during photographer Fedosenko’s visit, this rat pack stole the show.