Gizmo Quiz - Volume 2 - Issue 9 - What Is It?

[bunltd]

Can you tell me what this [bunlimited.com] is? It'd be nice if you also describe it's function...

Have fun!

LisaB

[lgn]

did it use birch bark

[coconutz]

carbide?

[Lilliabeth]

vodka?

[bunltd]

tax1dr1ver, the Russian version is similar to what you already proposed. You already named the American counterpart.

lgn: did it use birch bark - no, birch - yes.

carbide, no.

We all may need vodka by the time this is done. ;)

[lgn]

birch pitch lamp lighter

[tax1dr1ver]

Well i'm not russian so i'm stuck :)

[lgn]

lamp shade or lamp chimmey extractor made out of birch

[coconutz]

Burns Mullein or Candlewick plant?

[Lilliabeth]

not vodka, huh?
Have anything to do with tea or samovar?

[Lilliabeth]

Wood carving?

[bunltd]

not a birch pitch lamp lighter

not a lamp shade or lamp chimmey extractor made out of birch.

Taxi: I'm not Russian either.

Not: Burns Mullein or Candlewick plant

No vodka, tea or samovar.

Taxi: you were closest

Let's talk about burning small bits of wood. Synonym for small bits of wood.

[Lilliabeth]

Are we carrying fire to a different hearth?

[tax1dr1ver]

Cresset:

[tax1dr1ver]

Essentially a basket, suspended or self-supporting, with a skeletal framework to hold burning chunks of wood or pine knots. Probably midieval in origin; about the crudest of historical-era lighting devices, next to the torch.

[4crests]

splinters

[tax1dr1ver]

Splint holder

[tax1dr1ver]

Similar to a rushlight holder in principle, with both using the "two fingers" pinch method, but far less sophisticated. Basically two bands of iron jammed into a piece of wood, it is designed to hold small pieces of wood (splinters, or splints) while they burn.

[coconutz]

splinter holder or lamp

[tax1dr1ver]

Come on bunltd... catch up :)

Has to be one of those!

[bunltd]

tax1dr1ver - but this one isn't a basket - although it's similar in function.

Lilliabeth - no we're not moving fire.

[4crests]

The splinter was a thin piece of resinous wood, that could be coated with tallow, that was held between two rocks, wedged into a crux of a stick or metal spines

[4crests]

Two of the earliest, most common, and longest used forms of lighting devices in Europe were the splinter and rush light. Used into the early part of this century in rural areas, these contrivances were the common man's candle.

[bunltd]

tax1dr1ver, that's the name I was looking for...

sorry for the brief delay, but this went on past my daughter's nap...

Yes, it is a splinter holder...

Can you find where I found this example?

[lgn]

Thats It, im out of time.

This is a tough one.

I must have checked every antique site on the
internet and nothing even close.

[4crests]

Splinters were in common use in Eastern Europe, Scotland, Scandinavia, and the Mediterranean. England, lacking resinous trees, developed the rushlight

[smokin]

it's a russian birch bark rush lamp

[tax1dr1ver]

Not yet, but here is what I searched for...

holds burning wood antique "lighting devices"

[google.com...]

went to this result:
[dapllc.com...]

[tax1dr1ver]

Man was that a hard one!

Took 3 hours!

Where did my Saturday GO!

[bunltd]

Here you go, larusse.com

[google.com...]

Whew! That lasted longer than I though it would!

LisaB

[4crests]

Found SPLINTERS here:
[markland.org...]

While searching google for RUSHLIGHTS