While there isn't one single perfect translation, understanding the nuances of this term requires exploring the history and chemical composition of firepowder itself. The English language uses various terms depending on context, from the archaic "gunpowder" to the more modern and che...
Chinese Taoist alchemists were the major force behindthe early invention of gunpowder. Emperor Wu Di (156-87 BCE) of theHan dynastyfinanced research done by the alchemists on the secrets of eternal life. The alchemists experimented with thesulfurandsaltpeterheating the substances in order to transfo...
Gunpowder, also known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur (S), charcoal (C), and potassium nitrate (saltpeter, KNO3). The sulfur and charcoal act as fuels while the saltpeter is an oxid...
Some may differ based on their size and weight, others by their composition. A wooden arrow with a bone tip and bird feather fletching (the stabilizing counterweight of an arrow, opposite from the tip) might be emblematic or a more traditional or ancient bow. A more modern bow might be ...
The scent that was especially composed for this painting – created by senior nose Birgit Sijbrands of IFF – reflected many of the visible elements of the story: the weather, damp earth and grass, gunpowder, leather and horses. Even the smell of anxiety, expressed most lively in the eyes ...
Powder: “(from the Frenchpoudre) Dust, any thing ground small; dust prepared for the hair; gunpowder.”[7] Powder-bag: This term was used in a 1789 document in the following manner. “Unfortunately the hair-dresser’s wife had applied a cast-off powder-bag of her husband’s to the ...
History of Fireworks – Legends and Stories According to a Chinese legend,the invention of fireworks is attributed to a Chinese cook. The cook accidentally mixed three ingredients, namely charcoal, sulfur, and potassium nitrate (the composition that was later used in gunpowder) and derived a black...
Unlike many of his predecessors, he made no pretensions to astrology or necromancy; but, taking Geber for his model, studied intently the nature and composition of metals, without reference to charms, incantations, or any foolish ceremonies. It was not, however, till late in life that he ...
shot rocket-powered arrows at the Mongol invaders in 1279. Explorers took knowledge of gunpowder, fireworks, and rockets back with them when they returned home. Arabians in the 7th century referred to rockets as Chinese arrows.Marco Polois credited with bringing gunpowder to Europe in the 13th ...
The OED’s definition is slightly different — a “common species of firework, in which the burning of the composition is usually terminated by a slight explosion” — with its earliest citation from 1534. The dictionary also says the word might be imitative of the sound such a firecracker ...