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Traditional jebena from central Ethiopia, distinguished from northern Ethiopian and southern Eritrean pots by its spout.

The jebena is a container used to brew coffee in the Ethiopian, Eritrean and eastern Sudanese traditional coffee ceremony.


Jebena with various colorful designs for sale in Asmara, Eritrea

The jebena is usually made of pottery. It has a spherical base, a neck and pouring spout, and a handle where the neck connects with the base. Those used in Ethiopia typically have a spout, but those use in Eritrea usually do not.

Typically, when the coffee boils up through the jebena's neck, it is poured in and out of another container to cool it. The liquid is then poured back into the jebena until it bubbles up. To pour the coffee from the jebena a filter made from horsehair or other material is placed in the spout of the jebena to prevent the grounds from escaping. In Ethiopia, a small pottery cup called a sini or finjal is used to contain the coffee poured from the jebena.[1]

There is a small restaurant in Ethiopia made in an image of an Ethiopian jebena figure. [2]

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