Experiment 1 - the Control

I knew that I was using terra cotta pots produced in Mexico that would not be identical but were close to the rough clay pots found in the East of Britain

While marketed as cups I expected a certain amount of evaporation to occur through the clay but did not know how much

As air evaporation is also a known method of salt making in Rome, and unlike most of the year late summer was predicted to be warm I felt a control test to help see the size of the salt crystals and the amount of water that would pass through the terra cotta with no heat would help set a baseline.

I was surprised to find that the clay cup did not retain any salt in the bottom of the cup after a week. Instead, the salt had seeped into the clay and the cloth cover I had sealed it with to prevent bugs. 

I attempted a second evaporation to see if the clay could reach a saturation point with the same results.