The 21st century is globalindustrialization and automation of all production processes. Against this background, traditional crafts seem something very ancient, archaic. One of the forgotten crafts is cooperage.
Who are the coopers? What do they do? And what is the meaning of the word coopers?
Под ремеслом подразумевается мелкое производство, using handicraft and primitive tools. It is also often referred to as “artisanal production”, and the corresponding workers are called “artisans”.
The first crafts emerged long ago, and there passed a longthe path of development, changing and taking new forms. In the Middle Ages, they contributed to the formation of separate layers of urban society. The industrial revolution led to the gradual ousting of artisans to the “margin” of social and economic life (XVIII - early XIX century).
The modern world is transnationalcorporations, large industrial concerns and mass production. It would seem that traditional crafts in such a world simply have no place. However, they continue to live and develop. Even in the field of information technology in our time are born their "artisans" (copywriters, specialists in SMM, etc.), and are very, very popular!
By traditional (historical) should include the following crafts:
So, who are these coopers? What and how do they produce? Let's answer these questions.
Бондарь – это мастер по изготовлению бочек (sometimes - and some other wood products). And the corresponding craft is called cooperage. Previously, it was distributed everywhere. Today, to meet this cooper is much more difficult. However, their craft is still relevant. After all, the wine and brandy industry needs wooden barrels.
Where does the term "cooper" come from?This word most likely has Ukrainian roots. From the Ukrainian language, it translates as "barrel". It is curious that in medieval Scandinavia the word "bond" was spread. So in the Scandinavian countries called free, free man.
It is impossible not to recall another curious fact. This profession gave rise to a fairly common surname - Cooper. It is very popular in Russia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus.
Other nations of the world have its analogues. What surnames were born from the cooperage in other countries, you can see in the following table:
| A country | Surname |
| UK, USA | Cooper |
| Israel | Bodner |
| France | Tunnel |
| Spain | Cubero |
| Italy | Bottai |
| Germany, Austria | Scheffler |
| Poland | Bednarski |
| Romania, Moldova | Butnaru |
Cooper is not just entertainment or tributetraditions. This is very hard work that requires considerable skills and abilities from the master. In addition, at the disposal of cooper a whole arsenal of tools that you need to be able to use correctly. In addition to the trivial and familiar to all the ax, among them there are also exotic tools: the mash, the jointer, strugi.
Wooden barrels are a seemingly simple thing.But it only seems so at first glance. A modern cooper should be a carpenter, a machinist, and a tinsmith. He should be well versed in the tree species: not every wood is suitable for this business (oak, heather and linden are best for making barrels and tubs). Carpentry skills are also important here, because you need to perfectly fit all the bars and the bottom to each other.
To become a good cooper, you should have threesuperior quality. This is the utmost accuracy, accuracy and excellent coordination of movements. Coopers today are in demand, especially in the wine and chemical industries. The work of such masters is estimated at about 30-50 thousand rubles.
