Only young male criminals were locked up in “het Rasphuis”. Female criminals were sent to “het Spinhuis”. The men had to grate wood from the brazil tree (Caesalpinia echinata or Pernambuco) from Brazil into powder using an eight- to 12-blade grating saw; hence the name. This powder was delivered to the dye industry, where it was converted into a pigment – called “braziel”. This was used as a red-tone textile dye.
