The Cooper @museum.de

F: Here in the loft, we'll be showing you everything you'd find in a cooper's workshop. The trade is now almost extinct. But in the past, there was no way around the cooper. Before stainless steel and plastic came into fashion, the wooden barrel was the only option for storing and transporting goods such as wine, beer, soft soap or oil.

M: The term "cooper" is derived from the Low German word "Kufe", which means "tub" or "vat". The same word, Kufe, was also used for an old German measure of capacity that varied in size depending on the region.

F: For his work, the cooper needed a range of tools: for example, planes, pliers, hooks and shaves, a barrel tightener, a cooper's hoop driver and a driving hammer. And of course he also needed a carving bench – known locally as a Räppelbock.

M: The carving bench was used to hold workpieces steady. At the front end, there's a kind of clamping device in which the wood is secured. Through a gap, the clamp extends to the underside of the bench. As soon as you put your foot on it, it moves back and forth like a pedal. The advantage of this design was that it left both the cooper's hands free for his work.

F: The clamped workpieces were often peeled or smoothed with a drawknife. Handles for tools or even roof shingles could be made in the same way. Drawknives typically have two handles, one on each side.