It is proposed that petrographic studies of ceramic production in the Aegean should integrate observation of processes and examination of materials, obtained by ethnographic study of traditional potters, with archaeological and petrographic data from the same area. This approach is illustrated by reference to a petrological study of large Minoan storage jars of the Neopalatial period in central Crete. The article summarizes ethnographic and geological prospection in progress in the Knossos/Archanes region and the technological information they provide. Preliminary results of petrographic analysis of ancient and modern ceramics and their raw materials are presented, showing that a major center of pottery production may have existed around Mount Juktas.