Potters of Firsk, The-Jack Vance short story

Potters of Firsk, The-Jack Vance short story

The Potters of Firsk is a 19 page short story that was published originally in May, 1950 in Astounding Science Fiction magazine.  Vance called the ending “smarmy” in his introduction to its 1982 release in the collection Lost Moons.  I thought it was a very imaginative, creative story that demonstrates how early in his career Vance was able to produce well written, interesting stories.  The main character, Thomm, is asked about a beautiful bowl on his desk and tells the story of how he obtained it on the planet Firsk from fierce, secretive potters who used human bones in their glazes. These potters usually used the bones of the deceased per an ancient agreement with the local people.  But "when the need is great, we do anticipate nature by a year or two...The soul lives forever in the pot it beautifies." One of Thomm's assignments on Firsk was to make sure that local people were not captured alive to be killed later when the bone supply was low. In this fascinating tale a number of cultural anthropological issues arise.  I’ve read this five times so far and found it to be a very good early short story. I rated it a 5.

Included in the Jack Vance collection titled Gadget Stories (2005) part of VIE

Included in the Jack Vance collection titled Light from a Lone Star (1985)

Included in the Jack Vance collection titled Lost Moons (1982)

Included in the Jack Vance collection titled Wild Thyme, Green Magic (2009)

Included in the Vance collection titled Sail 25 and Other Stories (2017 Spatterlight)