Reifendrehen technique

“Reifendrehen” was developed in the Erzgebirge near Seiffen around 1800 for the manufacturing of small wooden animals and figures that are used as toys or to decorate Christmas pyramids or nativity scenes. In the process a wooden ring is turned on a lathe from the outside so that the contour of the desired figure is produced in cross section. Many identical figures result from one ring thanks to small ring sections being sawn off.