Clay El Castillo pyramid on a backyard flagstone patio beside a weathered chair, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Nine sections of a clay El Castillo pyramid floating apart to show how they stack, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Gray stone clay El Castillo pyramid, 19 in tall, beside a wooden chair, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Back of a clay El Castillo pyramid in a bright room, stair and temple showing, made from The Clay Hole paper template
East side of a clay El Castillo pyramid beside a chair, one stair centered, made from The Clay Hole paper template
West side of a clay El Castillo pyramid beside a chair, one stair centered, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Clay El Castillo pyramid seen from above beside a chair, its temple roof showing, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Ribbed stair and recessed panels of a clay El Castillo pyramid beside a mug, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Front stairway of a clay El Castillo pyramid with its balustrades, beside a chair, made from The Clay Hole paper template
Numbered section map of the El Castillo template, S1 to S9, made from The Clay Hole paper template

Legendary paper template 144, a world monument

El Castillo at Chichén Itzá

New: nobody has built this one yet

You can download this one with confidence. So far every template built and every template in progress has come out 100 percent perfect, and the same will likely be true for this one.

Every template starts out in my New Pattern Program, marked NEW, until someone builds it in clay and it checks out. This one should be sound and work as drawn, so use it at your own discretion and be ready to adjust on the fly if your project needs it. Pivoting mid-build is part of the fun of pottery.

Members: be the first to show me this one fully assembled and I’ll fire that piece free, with your name on its tile for good. See which templates are still up for grabs.

Made this one? Text it to the studio or tag @theclayhole on Instagram.

A 19 in El Castillo pyramid, built in nine kiln-sized slab sections and joined after firing. It measures 41 5/8 in across the stairways and 35 1/8 in across the terraces, at 1:62.

Part of World Monuments, the Legendary level, sold on its own and never in a bundle.

  • Legendary
  • 9 sections
  • About 90 hours at the table
  • About 194 lb of clay
  • 143 pages
  • Requires extra purchases

You will need epoxy putty and a slow-setting epoxy for the joints, foam board for propping soft walls, and a flat display board at least 46 in square, bought separately. The guide lists every tool and material.

Kiln: Every section fits a kiln at least 28 in across and 27 in deep inside, such as a Skutt KM-1227.

$250.00 one PDF, 143 pages, yours to print as often as you like

Flip through the free sample
  • Members get five templates free every month, and a Legendary one uses five of them. Log in to claim this one.
  • Not a member yet: see what a membership includes.
  • Delivered as a download link by email the moment the order goes through.
What you will make

El Castillo at Chichén Itzá, 41 5/8 in across the stairways

Nine battered terraces, a ribbed stairway up every face, 52 recessed panels on each side and a temple on top. Bare, it reads as El Castillo from across the room, before anyone gets close enough to count the steps.

The terraces lean in at 73 degrees, so the hard part is keeping them true while the clay firms up. The guide has you hold every flange, rib and step fin on foam block stacks until the section stands on its own, and every joint is lettered on both edges. Much of the building repeats: 416 clay pieces come from 54 patterns, so by the second stairway your hands know the way.

The patterns give you the pyramid. The serpent heads at the foot of the north stair, the serpent columns, the door masks, the roof merlons and the stone coursing are yours to carve, sprig or press. It already reads as the real thing without them.

Finished41 5/8 in across the stairways, 19 in tall
ScaleThe real pyramid at 1:62
Sections9, each fired on its own
Heaviest sectionAbout 19 lb wet
ClayAbout 194 lb, 8 bags of 25 lb
At the tableAbout 90 hours, over 8 to 12 weeks
Drying3 to 4 weeks, slowly
Display baseA flat board at least 46 in square
Built in sections

Nine sections that each fit a kiln, joined for good at the end

Every section fits a kiln at least 28 in across and 27 in deep inside, such as a Skutt KM-1227. Each section dries, bisques and glazes on its own, then the joints close with epoxy putty once the last firing is done.

SectionWhat it isWet, across x tallWet weight
S1North stair21.4 x 18.1 inAbout 16 lb
S2East stair20.6 x 18.1 inAbout 16 lb
S3South stair20.6 x 18.1 inAbout 16 lb
S4West stair20.6 x 18.1 inAbout 16 lb
S5North-east corner23.9 x 17.3 inAbout 19 lb
S6South-east corner23.9 x 17.3 inAbout 19 lb
S7South-west corner23.9 x 17.3 inAbout 19 lb
S8North-west corner23.9 x 17.3 inAbout 19 lb
S9The summit: platform and temple21.3 x 6.1 inAbout 15 lb

Sizes include each section's shrink slab, the clay disc it fires on. Fired, everything comes out about 12 percent smaller.

Section map of the El Castillo pottery template: nine numbered sections lifted apart to show how they stack
The section map, S1 at the bottom
What is in the pack

A 30 page guide and every pattern piece, 143 pages in one PDF

  • The guide: tools and materials, clay, building every section step by step, keeping clay workable for weeks, drying in a dry, average or humid room, joints, firing, glazing, assembly, and what to do when something goes wrong
  • Every one of the 416 pieces, cut from 54 patterns, on 112 Letter pages. The big ones print as tiles with overlap strips, tape lines, matching marks and a tile map
  • A private link to the same patterns on 9 large sheets, 24 x 36 in, for a copy shop, with every piece whole. It is the easier way to print
  • A 4 in check bar on every Letter page and a 10 in bar on every large sheet, so you prove the print before you cut
  • A numbered section map, a checklist for every section, every joint lettered on both of its edges, and a page of ideas for your own carving
Cover page of El Castillo at Chichen Itza, a Legendary pottery paper template from The Clay Hole
The cover

Want to see how it reads before you commit to a month of evenings? The free sample has the contents, the first pages of the guide and a pattern page.

Flip through the free sample
A string around your finger

The final lap is yours

I drew these so the fiddly part is already solved. The seams line up, the lid fits, and the piece comes out the size the pack says. That’s my part. Everything after the last seam belongs to you.

Press a texture into the slab before you cut it. Carve or pierce it at leather hard. Give it feet, a knob or a handle I never drew. Glaze it in something I would never pick in a million years. Two people can build the same template side by side and walk away with pieces that look nothing alike, and that’s exactly how it should go.

  • Texture the slab first
  • Carve, pierce or stamp
  • Add feet, knobs or handles
  • Sprigs and slip trailing
  • Glaze it your way

One thing to keep in mind: leave the bones alone. Thinning a wall that carries weight, cutting through a seam or piling extra clay on a lid changes how the piece holds together in the kiln. Decorate the skin as much as you like.

More big builds

The other world monuments, and the Insane builds

Pieces with dozens of numbered parts that fire whole in one kiln. Or see every template by level.

White marble-glazed Leaning Tower of Pisa in clay, 42 in tall beside a dining chair, made from The Clay Hole paper templateLegendary The Leaning Tower of Pisa $160, free for members Cream clay Arc de Triomphe, 40 in tall, on a gravel garden path among hydrangeas, made from The Clay Hole paper templateLegendary The Arc de Triomphe $280, free for members Giant faceted black stoneware chess pawn with a gem-cut ball beside a coffee mug, made from The Clay Hole paper templateInsane The Giant Geometric Chess Pawn $50, free for members Giant faceted black stoneware chess rook with square battlements beside a coffee mug, made from The Clay Hole paper templateInsane The Giant Geometric Chess Rook $50, free for members
Questions

The ones that come up

What size kiln do I need

Every section fits a kiln at least 28 in across and 27 in deep inside, such as a Skutt KM-1227. That is measured with room to spare from the walls and the lid, at the wet size, which is the biggest a section ever is. A smaller kiln will not take the widest sections.

Which clay

One grogged stoneware that fires between cone 5 and cone 6, the same clay for every section, shrink slab and prop, so everything shrinks together. You need about 194 lb, which is 8 bags of 25 lb, spare clay included.

How do I print the big patterns

Take the large-format link from the guide to a copy shop and ask for 9 sheets at 24 x 36 in, printed at 100 percent. Or print the 112 Letter pages at home and tape the tiles together; the marks line up and a check bar on every page proves the size.

Do I need a membership to buy this

No. It is $250 for anyone. Current members can claim it free, and a Legendary template uses five of the month’s free picks.

Is it part of a bundle

No. Legendary templates are sold on their own and are never part of any bundle.

Can I sell what I make from it

Yes. What you make is yours to keep, give or sell. The pattern file is for your own use and is not to be shared.

Members

A whole month of free picks, spent on one pyramid

Current members of The Clay Hole pick five templates free every month, and a Legendary one takes five of them. If you build it, bring it in. I would love to see it standing.

Log in to claim it freeSee the World Monuments