Eva Pančuhová: Wafer making machines
Another tradition that remains today is the baking of Christmas wafers – a thin pastry from unleavened dough. In the past, it was the job of the local teacher. The wafers were baked in wafer machines and work with them was demanding as they were relatively large. There was a combination metal tool with a large opening scissors mechanism with two circular or rectangular plates – the jaws. The dough was poured between them. On the inner side of one or both plates was a carved pattern, which was negatively transferred to the wafer. This usually featured a religious motif; secular motifs were uncommon. The oldest wafer making machines were made by smiths. They were known in Slovakia by the sixteenth century. Baking wafers as celebrative pastry remains a tradition in Slovakia up to today, and although sometimes new machines are used, old wafer machines are far more common.
Further articles magazine Craft, Art, Design 02/2004:
- Eva Trilecová: Enjoying coffee with Ivica Markovičová
- Silvia Fedorová: Talents 1993 – 2003 (+ 2004)
- Viera Kleinová: craft/ design/ textile 2
- Viera Kleinová: I spy whatever you want...
- Ágnes Schramm: Pewter – silver for the poor
- Oľga Danglová: Textile variation of Oľga Koreňová
- Viera Kleinová: Very short waves (Felt textile design)
- Viera Kleinová: New Traditions (Slovak Utilitarian Art and Design in Vienna)
- Martin Mešša: Smith days in the Court of Crafts
- Rastislava Stoličná: Ritual bread in traditional Slovak culture
- Eva Pančuhová: Wafer making machines
- Soňa Pavuková: Saltshakers
