Can I bum a light...

[Phayes]

Hello,
I was just wondering what a common way for lighting things such as candle and pipes during medieval times? Any help would be much appreciated!

 

[Erica]

I think there were very primitive matches which were sticks of wood impregnated with Sulfur in ancient China, but I don't know how reliable or widespread they were. In medieval Europe, I believe a flint and steel was used to produce sparks that could ignite tinder in a fireplace or a brazier. A candle could be lit from that (probably not directly from the flint and steel but from the brazier or fireplace or another candle).

Of course, if your story is taking place in a fantasy world (as opposed to a real time and place), you can create other means of lighting candles (or producing light) quickly and easily.

 

[Phayes]

Thanks Erica! Yeah I'll have to look into this more, and your absolutely right, I may create my own way doing fire.

 

[Butterfly]

Bear in mind, in a castle, especially in winter, there would be a page in attendance at the fire to keep it burning constantly. He'd get a whipping if he let it go out.

The fire was also used to cook food on in cauldrons.

I doubt though if a candle would have been put near the fireplace, the wax would melt. More likely a flame would have been carried by use of a twig to the candle/lamp/lantern.

PS. The first lighters were invented in the 16th century from flintlock pistols. Probably later than what you're after though.

 

[Erica]

Bear in mind, in a castle, especially in winter, there would be a page in attendance at the fire to keep it burning constantly. He'd get a whipping if he let it go out.

I doubt though if a candle would have been put near the fireplace, the wax would melt. More likely a flame would have been carried by use of a twig to the candle/lamp/lantern.

Good point. Candles were made from tallow or beeswax, and they definitely melted more easily than today's paraffin models.

I remember reading about the early lighters somewhere, but I was unsure of whether they produced a hot enough or portable enough flame to actually light candles or if they were more for lighting campfires.

In my world, I have things called 'strikers' that are loosely modeled after those, and I leave it to the reader's imagination how they work.

 

[Benjamin Clayborne]

It's funny, in my entire novel I never once had to consider how to start a fire mechanically, because the main character can start fires with her mind. Every other time the characters come across fire of some kind, it's implied that it was already burning when they got there (candles, lamps, hearthfires, etc.).

 

[Telcontar]

Starting a fire from scratch? Flint and tinder. For lighting a fire when other fire is around - use a burning splinter (this is how they'd light pipes. Use a splinter from an already-burning fire).

 

[The Blue Lotus]

Check out the Legandary Sidekick Challenge, I had posted information relating to the use of matches, and other points of contention there, which you might find useful.
Matches came in a lot of forms back then.

China has them as far back as 500 Bc If I recall properly, in Europe they were manufactured en mass starting in the 1800's so You will have to figure out what year in specific you wish to place things at to have the "truth factor" there. Hope that helps.
http://mythicscribes.com/forums/challenges/1597-legendary-sidekick-trigger-challenge-5.html Post number 202.
Luck.

 

[Phayes]

Thanks everyone! This is a lot of great information... I knew that usually they just started a fire by flint and just lit everything from there... and I think this makes the most sense for what I'm writing, but I'll continue to look. The research game is never finished.

 

[OrionDarkwood]

Here are a couple of links that may help

Medieval Technology, Lighting

The Labyrinth

 

[The Blue Lotus]

I don't usualy refer to Wiki links but perhaps this will give you a place to start looking for the information you seek. Match - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I don't recall off the top of my head but I do remember reading about matches that hunters carried around that had glass tubes rather than wood or paper, with a larger head for ligting fires outside.

Parlor matchers were widely used by the upperclass soon after the invention was in production, and they were safer that those that had come before them. However, they were still capable of throwing sparks long distances, thus they were used with caution.

Some matches were even scented to cover the strong smell of the chemicals used to make them. Hopefuly you will find some of this helpful.

 

[SeverinR]

I thought there was a name for the splinter used to light a pipe or candle, I was thinking taper, but that is a candle. It was long thin at the top, larger at the bottom, so it could be used for the purpose.

 

[Graham Irwin]

A flash lens was invented in the middle east long, long ago.

Magnify a sun beam onto some tinder and it will certainly catch.

Ever play in the backyard setting GI Joes on fire?

 

[Anders Ämting]

Since you are (presumably) writing fantasy, perhaps the question isn't "What did they use to light fires in the middle ages?" but rather "What sort of fire lighting technology does the basic technology level in my setting actually allow?" The whole point about writing fantasy is that you don't have to restrict yourself to reality.

Take matches. Do the people in your story understand the chemistry enough to make them? Do they have the resources to produce them? Is there a valid reason for them to not have invented the match? I mean, it's not rocket science; you just put some chemicals on a stick and then you get fire.

Besides, a certain type of technology doesn't have to emerge at a given point in the over-all technological advancement of any given culture. For example, the Chinese invented gunpowder around the same time the Europeans invented vikings.

Unless you're writing a historical novel that has to be historically accurate, your main concern is wether or not a certain technology makes sense in the context of your story.

 

[Benjamin Clayborne]

Take matches. Do the people in your story understand the chemistry enough to make them? Do they have the resources to produce them? Is there a valid reason for them to not have invented the match? I mean, it's not rocket science; you just put some chemicals on a stick and then you get fire.

Yeah, but you still have to develop the method for applying the chemicals to the stick in a way that they stay solid and useful for long periods without decaying; you also need mechanization in order to do it consistently or it's going to be very labor-intensive; you need enough of an industrial base to produce those chemicals in large quantities; etc. A lot of tech we take for granted as "simple" still depended on dozens of separate advancements to be possible.

 

[Anders Ämting]

Yeah, but you still have to develop the method for applying the chemicals to the stick in a way that they stay solid and useful for long periods without decaying; you also need mechanization in order to do it consistently or it's going to be very labor-intensive; you need enough of an industrial base to produce those chemicals in large quantities; etc. A lot of tech we take for granted as "simple" still depended on dozens of separate advancements to be possible.

Well, that's where research comes in - you have to figure out what the exact requirements are. Honestly, I was mostly using matches as a topical example. But my point is that some technologies can exist just fine in a society of roughly medieval levels of advancement, provided people have managed to figure it out and have the means to make them.

 

[sashamerideth]

I don't know if it has been mentioned yet, but the fire piston would also make a good fire starter. I use it in my fantasy.

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