Oaxaca is known for the high quality crafts produced in the villages scattered around the area, one of which is the black pottery, emblematic of Oaxaca and ubiquitous in Mexico and known and admired internationally as well. The small community of San Bartolo Coyotepec just on the outskirts of Oaxaca specializes in this ceramics craft and 600 families in the community contribute to this industry. "The origins of barro negro pottery, as it's called, extend over centuries, with examples
of it found at archeological sites, fashioned mostly into jars and other
utilitarian items. It has remained a traditional crafts of the Zapotecs and Mixtecs of the Central Valleys area to the present day." At the Mercado de Artesanias, the artisans market, vendors display and sell the ceramics and other crafts of the community. At peak times, this market is a busy place but we must have been there at an off time as it was pretty quiet and only a few vendors were open. The only ceramics store that seemed to be open was the Pottery of Doña Rosa Real, the woman who developed the technique of creating a glossy finish on the pottery that, before her innovation, had a matte black finish. 
Here are some random samplings of sights around the neighbourhood where we were staying.
This is very much in the tourist zone, with it's lovely colonial architecture and colourful homes, which is bounded by a major highway on the other side of which is regular urban Mexico and hardly any foreigners.
This looks like an aqueduct but in each of these arches is a home or business, or both and on the top side are homes as well.
These frangipani, or plumeria if you prefer, are lovely things.
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