Traditional trades of Mallorca: the artisans of Búger

Until just a few decades ago, the villages of Mallorca were small, self-sufficient communities. Each had its own specialist artisans who made tools, utensils and other items essential for everyday life. Búger, one of Mallorca’s smallest municipalities, was particularly renowned for two trades that have now almost disappeared: spoon-makers and picarolers.

“Cullerer” (spoon-maker)

Yes, it’s hard to believe, but spoon-making used to be a proper trade. That’s because spoons and forks were once made by hand from wood.

The village in Mallorca that stood out in this craft is a very small one, Búger, with a population of barely 1,000, which in its heyday had as many as 15 active ‘Mestres cullerers’ (master spoon-makers).

Various types of wood were used, but mainly pine and orange wood. It took about an hour to make a single piece, although the work couldn’t be done all in one go.

To make a spoon, you had to start with green wood, as it was easier to work with. You then had to leave it to dry, after which you could hollow it out and shape it into a spoon. Amongst others, a key tool for making spoons was the ‘xapeta’, which was used to hollow out the wood. It came in different sizes depending on whether one wanted to make a spoon, a teaspoon or a ladle.

For forks, the main tool was the ‘xorrac’, which was used to create their characteristic prongs. Both spoons and forks were finished off with files and sandpaper to achieve a smoother finish.

antique wooden cutlery in the Museum of Manacor

“Picaroler” (cowbell-maker)

This Mallorcan word refers to the craftsman who made picarols (cowbells) for animals, mainly sheep and goats, but also for cows.

Picarols are important because each one has a different sound, which enabled shepherds to recognise their animals and locate them more easily.

The village of Búger also excelled in this craft, although today it too has all but died out. The work was not particularly difficult, but it was very labour-intensive, and each master craftsman had his own secrets which he guarded jealously.

To make a picarol, an iron plate was first marked out using templates of different sizes, depending on the desired result. It was then cut, shaped, drilled with holes for hanging, and fitted with the batai (clapper). The batai was the most difficult part to make, because if it wasn’t done properly, it wouldn’t sound right.

But what was essential was the ‘cagaferro’, a special clay made from earth and seaweed gathered from the beach. This clay was used to coat the picarol when it was placed in the furnace to give it its final finish. It was absolutely vital to ensure that, when the metal was heated to a red-hot state, it would not crack or creak. This was each master craftsman’s great secret: the formula for the cagaferro.

The final product, the cowbell, came in different sizes and also had different names, depending on its use: ‘esquella’ (for cows), ‘picarol gros’, ‘quatre sous’ (for sheep), ‘quinze doblers’, and the smallest of all, the ‘picarol petit’ …

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Why have these trades disappeared?

Nowadays, many jobs are linked to new technologies, and in general, in this 21st-century society, the service sector is becoming increasingly dominant.

But in the past, agriculture and artisanal production were what really mattered. People had trades to meet their day-to-day needs, and that is what they did for a living. Life has changed a great deal and today everything is industrialised; all these products are manufactured by machines in large quantities. This has made the end product much cheaper, ultimately leading to the disappearance of these artisans from our island.

Final thoughts

Nowadays, hardly anyone needs a spoon-maker or a knife-maker. However, learning about these trades is a way of understanding how our grandparents lived and of appreciating the vast heritage of craftsmanship that has shaped Mallorca’s identity.

If you liked this article on the old crafts in Búger, you will love the article on construction with marés, which has defined the type of construction in the Balearic Islands. Follow the link to see the article: Building with mares: the stone that shaped Mallorca

https://www.productesdemallorca.es/mares-stone-mallorca/?lang=en