A short history of the beer mat
In German-speaking countries a beer mat is a Bierdeckel, a beer lid, and the name tells the story. In the nineteenth century a drinker in a garden or a hall would cover a glass with a lid or a small felt disc between sips, to keep out flies, leaves and dust. The covers were made of pewter, wood or felt.
The flat mat that goes under the glass, rather than on top, appeared later in the century. A patent for a mat made of pressed wood pulp is credited to Robert Sputh of Dresden in 1892. Pulp board was cheap and absorbed spills, and breweries quickly saw that it could carry a name.
The printed surface
Printing the brewery's name on the mat made it a small advertisement that every customer would handle. Collecting them became a hobby, and collectors are still organised in clubs in several countries. Mats are also used for sums, for notes and for the tally of the evening. In Czech pubs the waiter often marks the number of beers on the mat in pen, and the mat then serves as the bill.
A good mat is flat, absorbent and a little stiff. Few everyday objects have changed so little in a century.