This process is not new. To be more precise, it was already used in antiquity to preserve wood and protect it from rot and insects. The special Shou Sugi Ban technique has its origins in centuries-old Japanese traditions. For some time now, we at HUTSCHN have been dealing with the technique of Shou Sugi Ban, which is called Yakisugi in Japan itself.
The controlled charring of the outer layer additionally preserves the oak of our HUTSCHN additionally preserved by the charcoal forming a natural protection against fungi and vermin. Already during excavations of the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, evidence was confirmed that the marshy subsoil had been fortified with charcoal before construction work began. And the Roman architect Vitruvius also described the use of charred piles of oak wood in the construction of a house in the first century BC.The terms yakisugi and shou sugi ban refer to the same traditional Japanese technique of charring wood(yaki means grilled, flamed). Sugi - Japanese cedar - is mainly used, while in Europe pine, larch and other types of wood are also subjected to the process. On the Japanese island of Naoshima, the technique is still traditionally used in house construction today, and Naoshima's inhabitants state that a shou sugi ban façade can withstand periods of 40-80 years without needing to be retreated.
The softer annual rings are burnt out more than the harder ones. The result is a surface with its very own archaic feel. Bringing the inner beauty of wood to light takes time & patience. Each stage of the kilning requires attention and tact, as too much heat would damage the wood.
