Tinning

Snuffing, the traditional craft practiced by artisans who tin copper vessels, is a skilled traditional handicraft. Arising from the widespread use of copper in daily life, this profession has become inseparable from copper cookware, which has become synonymous with Turkish cuisine over time.

Snuffing (AA)

Chemical Significance

Tin, by preventing harmful substances formed when copper comes into contact with air, provides a safe alloy and is known for protecting the copper vessel, the food cooked in it, and the consumer. When copper vessels are used without tinning, they oxidize rapidly and can cause copper poisoning. For this reason, tin is essential for making copper cookware safe for kitchen use. In industry, tin is widely used in solders, coating steel sheets, and in chemical, aerospace, shipbuilding, and electronics applications.

The Snuffing Process and Materials Used

Snuffing consists of three meticulous stages:

• Annealing: The process of burning off grease and accumulated residues from vessels to be tinned, using a bellows (typically made of buffalo hide) and charcoal at moderate heat. Vessels that have never been tinned before are called "kızıl kap".
• Cleaning: Annealed materials are coated with hydrochloric acid, and the surfaces to be tinned are cleaned manually using fine sand and the hands and feet. All external contaminants that could prevent tin adhesion are removed. Dents and deformations are corrected using specialized tools such as hammers and mallets. The base of the vessel is usually smoothed with a mallet, as the mallet does not harden the copper base, whereas a pardek çekici causes hardening. During cleaning, sand, water, caustic soda, and hydrochloric acid are also used.
• Tinning: Vessels heated in the bellows are coated with tin rods, which easily melt and spread into a smooth layer. The process of evenly distributing the molten tin over the surface using a snuffing wad (a roll-shaped cotton, distinct from sterile cotton and easily manipulated in the hand) and nişadır (ammonium chloride) is called "tinning".
• Nişadır removes the oxide layer formed on the metal surface, rendering the metal suitable for soldering.

Other materials used in snuffing include clamps, pincers, edrenç, brushes, tıkmak, zinc, and pardek çekici.

Snuffing (AA)

The Snuffing Profession in Anatolia and Its Current Status

In Anatolia, snuffing has long been an integral part of daily life and has been practiced both in fixed shops and as a mobile trade. Snuffing artisans traveled from street to street, dedicating their labor to tinning copper utensils used in households. This practice stemmed from the widespread use of copper in daily life and the necessity of tinning. Even today, mobile snuffing artisans can still be found in certain areas.

However, in contemporary times, snuffing is among the crafts facing extinction. The increasing use of steel, aluminum, enamel, and Teflon cookware, the decline in copper vessel production, and the reduced public preference for copper utensils have pushed snuffing to the brink of disappearance. This situation is a consequence of shifts in supply and demand. Master snuffing artisans are concerned about their inability to find apprentices and the potential loss of this traditional craft. The future of this profession, transmitted through the master-apprentice relationship, remains uncertain.

The health benefits of cooking in tinned copper vessels have also been scientifically verified. Food cooked in tinned copper is said to be healthier, cleaner, and more flavorful.

Although copper continues to be valued symbolically and culturally for items such as decorative objects, cezve, ayran tası, cups, and basins, this alone is insufficient to sustain the profession’s former vitality. While demand increases during grape molasses and tomato paste season for large cauldron tinning, overall demand has declined.

It has been suggested that to ensure the sustainability of snuffing, it must be transmitted to new generations and supported through vocational training courses. It is proposed that the Ministry of National Education and People’s Education Centers could organize vocational courses and establish trade schools with dedicated departments for copperwork and snuffing.