Blow lighter

The striking lighter is a historical (often worn in a container on the body) equipment for generating fire, as it was used since prehistoric times and found on sites (e.g. Ötzi ).

Fire mallet with pebbles and tinder

description

The ensemble consists of flint , pyrite u. Ä. And tinder or fire sponge (Fomes fomentarius, Phellinus ).

If you hit flint and pyrite together, a high temperature will arise at the point of impact for a short time. The tiny splinters, separated by the blow, make the tinder glow as glowing sparks (if air is blown into it). Only when using flint and iron-containing minerals such as pyrite do sparks arise that glow long enough to be used with a suitable tinder base.

From at least 27 graves in four ceramic grave fields in Bavaria, there are device ensembles that can be identified as fire cutlery. The identification was not easy, since most of the pyrite bulbs had deteriorated due to storage and could not be recovered. Only in a few cases are solid tubers known because pyrite often oxidizes to rust-colored goethite (also called ocher earth) or limonite when stored in the ground for a long time.

See also

• Fire drilling
• "History" section in the "Lighter" article

literature

• Emil Hoffmann: Lexicon of the Stone Age. CH Beck Verlag, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-406-42125-3
• Norbert Nieszery : Linear ceramic grave fields in Bavaria by VML Verlag Marie Leidorf 1995 ISBN 3-924734-34-8