Billet (wood) was a specific and standardised form of wood fuel of significant importance in the traditional pre-fossil fuel economy. The term could also be applied to a cudgel.[1]
Nature and use
Billets were especially designed for burning on open hearth fires, often in conjunction with spits.[2]
Measurements and cost
The 16th C standardised a billet as three foot four inches in length, and ten inches around.[3]
A century later, Anthony A Wood recorded a load of billet wood as costing 12s 6d; while extravagance consisted of "burning in one yeare threescore pounds worth of the choicest billet".[4]
Literary references
- The William Shakespeare play Measure for Measure contains the phrase "beat out my brains with billets".[5]
See also
References
External links
This page was last edited on 18 November 2023, at 16:42