Key biting
Key biting (also Bart biting ) denotes an old craft tradition ( initiation ceremony ) of the locksmith to get out a apprentice a journeyman to make. An old journeyman put a mostly quite large key in the test person's mouth and turned it three times (which sometimes did not go off without injuries). Through this symbolic loosening of the tongue he was now allowed to freely raise his voice among the journeymen. Occasionally the test person also received a so-called accolade with a file. This was usually followed by a joint meal for the journeymen.
The custom of biting the key was also used by the gunsmiths , which can be traced back to the fact that the gunsmiths used to belong to the locksmiths' brotherhood.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Sonja Steiner-Welz: History of the Mannheim craft. Volume 1 . Reinhard Welz Vermittler Verlag, Mannheim, p. 38 (on Google Books )
- ^ Hans Schedelmann: The Viennese gunsmiths and gunsmiths . Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, p. 4 (on Google Books )