Charcoal "Meiler"

The charcoal "Meiler" was used to produce the charcoal required for rural and pre-industrial forges. The dried wood is stored tightly in a length of 1 to 2 metres around a fire shaft ("Quandl") made of poles and covered with a fireproof layer of brushwood, grass and earth.

The pile is lit in the fire shaft. In order to regulate the air supply and thus the charring of the wood, holes were punched in the casing of the pile. Depending on its size, a pile would burn for 2-3 weeks.