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Revision as of 06:51, 22 September 2011 by Garbornay (talk | contribs) (China invented powder)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Gunpowder in China Most of the early sources that mention gunpowder are Chinese. Exactly when gunpowder first saw light of day, there is uncertainty, but we know for sure that around the year 800-900 AD were popping fireworks in China.
The first known text with some certainty refers to black powder is a Taoist text is dated to the 9th century. This confirms that a mixture containing saltpeter and sulfur, honey and realgar, an orange-red arsensulfid, got a house to burn down. So judging from the mentioned ingredients and their - presumably unwanted - effect, we are over in something resembling gunpowder. Gunpowder in India The group of researchers who are inclined toward that Indians were the first to discover the saltpeter and gunpowder properties basing their idea of writings that are often found in religious historical context including the Mahabharata. The theory is based essentially on that in Indian Sanskrit literature, dating no further back than the Chinese sources, describes a product called agni-curna or fire-powder.
Here one finds also the description for primitive firearms or skyderør. But because the Indian cultural area is very much a tradition of oral transmission, it is very difficult to date precisely the sources and this applies especially some passages from them. So whether they are recent additions, there is no consensus.
Sources:
- Harvard University
- BBC documentary - Mary Carson
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