Mettenschicht

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Huthaus mining museum in Zinnwald (Ore Mountains)
Mettenschicht in the visitor mine Fell

The Mettenschicht is an old mining custom. This is the name given to the last shift before Christmas . The name refers to the Christmas mass following the shift .

procedure

The Steiger ended this shift prematurely with a knock, with which he knocked the miners out . Then he gave a kind of sermon in the hat house , which was richly decorated . By singing miner's songs (e.g. Der Steiger ), the miners thanked for the mountain blessing . A simple, typical meal ended the shift. The meal mostly consisted of bratwurst with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut as well as a herbal schnapps and a gaahlen Gelecht ("yellow light", synonym for cigar).

Tourist Mettenschicht celebrations

The idea of ​​the Mettenschicht, based on the Ore Mountains, was taken up by many visitor mines to design a Christmas party characterized by mining customs. The spectrum of events ranges from year-end celebrations that are strongly oriented towards historical traditions - often in the mine itself - for the often voluntary employees, friends and sponsors of the visitor mine, to bookable incentive events and mining folklore for coach tourists in the town hall.

Many cave exploration groups also celebrate this custom in the vicinity of their research objects and combine it with speleological information for their members and guests.

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