Charcoal pile
A charcoal pile (German: Kohlenmeiler or just Meiler) is a carefully arranged pile of wood, covered by turf or other layer, inside which a fire is lit in order to produce charcoal. The pile is tended by a charcoal burner. It is similar to a charcoal kiln, but the latter is usually a permanent structure made of e.g. stone.
Gallery
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Heart (Kern or Quandel) of the charcoal pile on an old Meilerplatz
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Layer of beech wood around the heart
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Pile with various layers (wood, spruce brushwood (Fichtenreisig), grass sods)
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Lighting of a charcoal pile by honorary guests at a Meilerfest (2014)
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Covered with loam, ready for firing
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Finished pile with windbreak, charcoal burner’s hut and fireplace
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Charcoal pile in the Westphalian Open Air Museum, Hagen
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Charcoal pile in Walpersdorf, one of the last in the Siegerland
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Opening of the charcoal pile
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Charcoal product
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Charcoal burners at work (turn of the 19th/20th centuries)
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Section of a charcoal pile
Literature
- Karl Hasel, Ekkehard Schwartz: Forstgeschichte. Ein Grundriss für Studium und Praxis. 2., aktualisierte Auflage. Kessel, Remagen, 2002, ISBN 3-935638-26-4
- Richard B. Hilf: Der Wald. Wald und Weidwerk in Geschichte und Gegenwart – Erster Teil [Reprint]. Aula, Wiebelsheim, 2003, ISBN 3-494-01331-4
- Hildebrandt, H., Heuser-Hildebrandt, B. and Stumböck, M.(2001): Bestandsgeschichtliche und kulturlandschaftsgenetische Untersuchungen im Naturwaldreservat Stelzenbach, Forstamt Nassau, Revier Winden. Mainzer Naturwissenschaftliches Archiv, Beiheft 25, 83 S., Mainz.
Weblinks
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kohlenmeiler. - European Charcoal Burners' Society
- Annual charcoal piles
- Charcoal burner's festival (Köhlerfest) in Fischbach/Kreis Kaiserslautern
- Annual charcoal burner's festival in Glasofen in the Spessart
- Charcoal burning in the Entlebuch (Switzerland) UNESCO Biosphere Heritage Site
- Charcoal burning in the Mettauer valley