Coppice Crafts in Britain: An Illustrated History

Woodland crafts have a rich history stretching back over the centuries, several varieties of which use coppice-grown material. Starting at the foundation of all of these, the woodland itself, Tom Kemp explores the history of an individual wood and of coppice crafts in general. Using a wonderful selection of images, Tom demonstrates the history and principles of individual crafts, including Woodland Management; Farm Crafts such as hurdles (woven and gate); other Woodland Fencing (post and rail, medieval continuous woven), hedgelaying and hay rakes; Home Crafts such as turnery (spoons, bowls, mazers), chair and stool bodging, spelk baskets, and besoms; Building in Wood, including corduroy roads, wattle and daub, laths, thatching spars and shingles; Wood in Industry, including faggots (home, baking, bricks), charcoal, and tan bark; and Crafts of the Coast, including Frenchmen's pots, inkwell pots, ships' fenders, coracles and curraghs. Tom also takes a look at the future of coppice crafts, including a discussion of both contemporary and continuing crafts.