• Home
  • Emperors
  • Inventions
  • Dynasties
  • Provinces
  • Food and Tea
  • Best Chinese History Books
  • About >>
    • About
    • Contact

Learn Chinese History

Where the Middle Kingdom comes alive

Home » Inventions » History of Chinese Fireworks

History of Chinese Fireworks

THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS, MEANING I MAY GET A SMALL COMMISSION IF YOU DECIDE TO MAKE A PURCHSE THROUGH MY LINKS, AT NO COST TO YOU. PLEASE READ MY DISCLOSURE FOR MORE INFO.

Article by Heather

history chinese fireworks

How the history of Chinese fireworks began

The history of making fireworks began with the ancient Chinese Daoists in the Han dynasty in 202 BC. During the Han dynasty, there was a religion called, Daoism (Dow-is-em). Daoists studied a form of science called alchemy and they were called alchemists.

The ancient Chinese emperors of the Han dynasty went to the Daoists and said, “We want to live forever.” The alchemists began looking for all kinds of things that the ancient Chinese emperors could take to make them live forever. Two of the things they found were potassium nitrate (saltpeter) and sulfur. Now, although these two things cannot make you live forever and by themselves, they do not make fireworks, without the work of the Daoists and their alchemy, we may not have fireworks today.

The history of Chinese fireworks as we know them today

The Han dynasty lasted until 220 AD without anyone understanding what else was needed to create fireworks. It wasn’t until the Song dynasty in the eleventh century, that the last thing was found to turn potassium nitrate and sulfur into fireworks – charcoal.

You see, potassium nitrate is a chemical that makes something burn. It gives fireworks the energy to blast out or explode from a container. When you hear the pops and booms from fireworks going off, that’s the potassium nitrate working.

Sulfur is a gas that works to make the fireworks spray from a container. It’s what makes fireworks smell like rotten eggs. Ooo, yuck.

Charcoal is made when you burn wood very slowly. It’s what burns when a lit match or fire touches the fireworks.

In the beginning, the fireworks were quite simple. After mixing the three items together, the ancient Chinese in the Song dynasty would throw some of it into a fire. The fireworks made a lot of sparks and popping sounds happen. Think magicians and wizards.

After a while, the ancient Chinese found a better way of using the fireworks. They hollowed out pieces of wood or bamboo tubes, stuffed them full of the fireworks, and threw them into a fire.

As the wood and bamboo tubes burned, the fireworks in the end of the tube caught fire, the tubes flew into the air, and the fireworks exploded from the fire and heat. Sparks shooting out of the tubes could be seen flying out into the night sky.

Oh, yeah, fireworks!

The fireworks that we see today are made from the same things – potassium nitrate, sulfur, and charcoal – as those made in the Song dynasty. However, there is one big difference: our fireworks come in many different colors. The sparks from the first fireworks were white. You must add other metals, such as copper and iron, to make the multi-colored lights that we see today when we watch fireworks.

You might also like:

  • Chinese Cannons HistoryChinese Cannons History
  • History of Chinese Emperors – Names, Dynasties and ReignsHistory of Chinese Emperors – Names, Dynasties…
  • Best Chinese History BooksBest Chinese History Books
  • Hainan Province: Facts, History and CultureHainan Province: Facts, History and Culture

Welcome!

LearnChineseHistory.com is a collection of articles on Chinese history and culture. When readers choose to purchase items through my links, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. It helps me pay for my web hosting. Thank you for your support!

Favorite Articles

  • History of the Chinese Compass
  • About Empress Wu Zetian
  • Emperor Wudi - Han Dynasty
  • Qin Dynasty History and Achievements
  • Chinese Province Meanings

Menu

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate Disclosure

Categories

  • Dynasties
  • Emperors
  • Food and Tea
  • Inventions
  • Provinces

Don’t Miss These…

  • • History of Chinese Fireworks
  • • Later Jin Dynasty: History & Facts
  • • Qin Dynasty Emperor Qin Shihuangdi
  • • Guangdong Pronvince: Facts, Culture & History
  • • Did the Ancient Chinese Invent the Abacus

Affiliate Disclosure

This post may contain affiliate links which means if you choose to make a purchase through my links, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. It helps pay for my web hosting and supports my work. All attempts are made to present the most correct information, but it may not be appropriate for your specific circumstance and information may become outdated.

Paid Endorsement Disclosure

PAID ENDORSEMENT DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. I will never endorse any product or service that I do not fully support.

Amazon Disclosure

AMAZON DISCLOSURE: LearnChineseHistory.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon properties including, but not limited to, amazon.com, amazon.ca, amazon.fr, amazon.de, amazon.co.uk, and amazon.it. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Full Disclosure and Privacy Policy

©2012-2022 All Rights Reserved.
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from this site's owner is strictly prohibited.