Making bricks and tiles has been a centuries-old practice in Transylvania and has grown with the development of the human settlements.
In many of these Transylvanian villages, there is a source of yellow clay soil, which, mixed with sand and water, is the raw material for the handmade and industrial brick and tile making.
The brickmakers of Mălâncrav are still manufacturing traditional bricks and tiles from the material found at the end of the village. On a workday, using special moulds, they will make several hundred bricks, while it is very interesting to watch the ancient skill of this valuable craft. After being left to dry for ten days, or even more in spring and autumn. The bricks and tiles are fired for 5 to 10 days in a specially built kiln, according to the direction of the wind, to raise the inside temperature to 900-1000 degrees.
The brick and tile kiln in Mălâncrav, has the capacity of 12,000 tiles, was built in 2009 and is similar to the kiln at Viscri which started production in 2006. Both projects belong to the Mihai Eminescu Trust and were developed in partnership with the Horizon Foundation, to meet the increasing demand for hand-made bricks and tiles.
Craftsmen:
Cozac Mihai, house 270
Dumitrașcu Nicolae, house 77,
