Flint and steel
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- Email us at repoteam@lib.msu.edu
- Report accessibility issue
- Copyright Status
- In Copyright
- Date
- 18xx/19xx
- Subjects
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Kitchen utensils
Cooking
United States
History
- Material Type
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Implements (object genre)
- Language
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No linguistic content
- Extent
- 1 object
- Historical Note
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In lieu of matches, flint and steel were used to start a fire by rubbing them together to create sparks. Starting a fire with flint and steel requires practice and skill. The flint and steel were held over a small bundle of kindling (such as dry leaves or a bit of rag) and struck together in order to create a spark that would fall down into the kindling. Once a spark had begun to smolder in the kindling, the person attempting to start a fire would gently blow on the embers and add bits of larger kindling in order to create a flame. This object includes a flint (the stone) and steel (a "C" shaped piece of metal) along side a bit of rag and the oval shaped box it was stored in.
- Holding Institution
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Michigan State University. Museum
- Permalink
- https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5m03xx3c