Iran’s Hormuz Island has one of the world’s most famous red clay mines, from which ocher is extracted, and a long history in the country’s mining industry. The island is located about 18 kilometers southeast of Bandar Abbas and occupies 42 square kilometers: covered by sedimentary rock and layers of volcanic material on its surface, with vast deposits of red clay.

Hormuz’s ocher is used in at least twenty different industrial products like paint, cosmetics, tiles and ceramics, mosaics, clay and glaze pottery, and the production of industrial micronized powders, among others. Even the island’s native people used ocher for making a traditional kind of food named Souragh.

But working conditions for laborers in Hormuz’s mines are very difficult, with one of the main issues being workplace conditions and a lack of safety facilities. The mine and factory belong to a private company that, according to its miners, does not pay enough to the workers.

One miner, Ali Hashem, 40, works at the Hormuz red clay mine and moves bags containing soil to be loaded and shipped for processing. Hashem says he is paid $260 per month and that the “amount of work is not worth the low payment workers receive monthly.”

“I am going to get married,” he says, “but my income is just too low working in this mine.”

Like Hashem, ten other workers spend long hours in the mine, facing hazardous conditions.

“If I was to raise a family, how would 260 dollars cover the expenses?” he asks.

Qusai, 4, and his brother Mahmud,10, produce pottery from mud in their grandfather's pottery workshop which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Four-year old Qosi Attalla is the youngest child in the factory who knows how to make traditional pottery. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Mustafa, 35, and his son Mahmud, 10, work together to repair the broken pottery. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Four-year old Qosi Attalla is the youngest child in the factory who knows how to make traditional pottery. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

The pottery factory resides right under the Attallah home, a part of their daily life. It has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Omar Atallah, 51, produces pottery, vases, bottles and receptacles from mud in this factory. It has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Ahmed Attallah, 14, carrying crockery that was produced by his grandfather at their workshop in Gaza city. This factory has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Ahmed Attallah, 14, left school when he was 13 to work in the factory alongside his father and grandfather. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Mustafa Atallah, 35 years old, repairs a big black pottery vessel called "al-Qedra" that is used for cooking a traditional Gazan meal made out of rice, meat, garlic and onions. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Mustafa Atallah, 35, doesn't study at school because he has a job in the family's humble factory performing numerous tasks. He repairs broken pottery and also makes new ones. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Hassan Atallah, 32, puts wood shavings into the mud kiln to use it to produce the pottery. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Hassan works beside the kiln while fresh pots are being created. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Hassan Atallah, 32,works beside the kiln while fresh pots are being created. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Hassan Atallah, 32, works beside the kiln while fresh pots are being created. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Four-year old Qosi Attalla is the youngest child in the factory who knows how to make traditional pottery. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Hassan Atallah, 32 years old, puts wood shavings into mud kiln to melt the mud by the fire. This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

This pottery factory in Gaza has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. The tradition of pottery making in Gaza dates back centuries and has been a source of income and family pride. This ceramic factory rest underneath the Attallah family's home. The Attallahs consider the pottery industry a part of their identity and heritage. They are one of the oldest families producing pottery in Gaza. Their factory was established over 60 years ago and are now struggling to maintain not only their business but an ancestral tradition. The security situation in Gaza and the Israeli blockade has made their business unprofitable and on the brink of vanishing.

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A Palestinian worker makes a pot made out of kneaded mud in one of the largest pottery workshops in Gaza. It has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy loads pottery into an underground kiln in a pottery workshop which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A young boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza city which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy carries crockery at a pottery workshop in Gaza which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A Palestinian man shaping a simple clay pot in a pottery factory which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A boy loads clay pots into storage rooms in a pottery factory, which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A Palestinian boy assembles rows of clay pots in a pottery factory, which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A Palestinian boy holding pots in a pottery factory, which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

A young boy carries a heavy vase in a pottery factory in Gaza, which has been a source of income and pride for the Attallah family for generations. Gaza Strip, June, 2013.

Clay from Karbala, Iraq, in Tehran, Iran