An important element is close to 2 centuries of life. It was a revolution when it came to lighting the fire.
It is true that currently the fire It is one of the most controlled elements when it comes to being manipulated. From stoves that turn on with a button and ignite a flame that allows cooking, to new electrical appliances that do not even require the use of gas. But there was a time when they were necessary, and that is why they are a million-dollar invention. We are talking about matches.
Known as matches or matcheshave a history of 180 years old and were a total revolution for the kitchen. The practicality with which they are lit made it possible to control the fire at a time when there were not many possibilities to start it in a simple way.
Matches
How matches were invented
The beginnings of this invention were not easy, the year was 1826 and the Inventor John Walker was working on a formula that would allow him to easily and quickly light a fire.. In a small accident, a small stick with which he had stirred his preparation fell to the ground in such a way that it generated friction that managed to ignite it.
That generated a radical change. Although it was known how to create some accelerants, it had never been possible to combine them with wood and ignite them. In this way he began to market his matches, at 1 shilling for a box of 50, which consisted of splinters or pieces of cardboard dipped in antimony sulfite, potassium chlorate and gum, accompanied by sandpaper to light them.
How did the invention revolutionize cooking and everyday life 180 years ago?
Those first matches were just a prototype that was perfected over time. The challenge after its creation was to invent these elements and make them safe, because they released gases during combustion that were very harmful to human beings.
It was in Sweden, one of the countries with the fewest hours of daylight and the coldest, thanks to the chemist Gustaf Erik Pasch, who changed the white or yellow phosphorus for red phosphorus that today we see in the heads of matches. And it works by creating friction with the sides of the box.
But it was not Pasch who became world famous for his safety matches, but the brothers Carl and Johan Lundström. They founded their factory in the Swedish city of Jönköping, patented them and sold them in very attractive colorful boxes, which ended up being a resounding success in making them millionaires.
Source: Ambito
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