Tar

Tar is a dark brown or black viscous liquid of hydrocarbons and free carbon, obtained from a wide variety of organic materials through destructive distillation.

[4][5] Since prehistoric times wood tar has been used as a water repellent coating for boats, ships, sails, and roofs.

Production and trade in pine-derived tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe[7] and Colonial America.

The wood is split into dimensions of a finger, stacked densely, and finally covered tight with earth and moss.

Wood tar is still used to seal traditional wooden boats and the roofs of historic, shingle-roofed churches, as well as painting exterior walls of log buildings.

[citation needed] In Finland, wood tar was once considered a panacea reputed to heal "even those cut in twain through their midriff".

A Finnish proverb states that "if sauna, vodka and tar won't help, the disease is fatal.

Tar paint has a translucent brownish hue and can be used to saturate and tone wood and protect it from weather.

Tar paint can also be toned with various pigments, producing translucent colors and preserving the wood texture.

By pouring hot wood tar onto somebody's bare skin and waiting for it to cool, they would remain stuck in one position.

[9] Pitch was familiar in 9th-century Iraq, derived from petroleum that became accessible from natural fields in the region.