Wood fired ovens have been around for 3,000 years or at best the early rise of civilization.
In much of Europe, the ovens were owned by nobility or the Church, who charged the locals a fee to bake or fined them if they avoided using the communal ovens.
As time progressed so did the rules and regulations, the Fournier (official baker) who had done the work to cut the firewood and heat the oven was declared the owner of the heat. Published rules forbade the drying of certain crops, determined which timber could be used, who had the purchased right to clean out the ashes (this was sold as fertilizer) and who had the purchased rights to take the breadcrumb sweepings away – used as chicken feed.
