Fireworks at the Beijing Olympics. (photo courtesy of myopera.com)

Enjoyed by the young and old, fireworks are imbued with happiness.  We have China to thank for them.

Some believe that China set off the first fireworks circa 200 B.C. after throwing green bamboo into a bonfire. Air pockets in the bamboo expanded from the heat, exploding with a noise that warded off evil spirits. It was a practice that became routine for the Chinese until they later invented gunpowder.

The origin of gunpowder is an interesting story of its own. You may choose to believe that its beginnings occurred some 2,000 years ago, when a cook accidentally mixed charcoal, sulfur, and salt peter (potassium nitrate), substances which were frequently used in the culinary or medical fields. Once lit, the concoction went up in flames.

The alternative story, a bit sexier in my opinion, says that between 600 – 900 A.D., Chinese alchemists were searching for a pill of immortality. In the course of their experimenting, they discovered a mixture containing salt peter, sulfur, and arsenic disulfide gave off a bright and extremely hot flame when heated. It was powerful enough, in fact, to burn the alchemists' shack to the ground.

However gunpowder was discovered, most agree that its main purpose at the time was for weaponry and that the first celebration with fireworks may have been a military victory.

courtesy of myopera.com

The firecracker as we know it is believed to have been made by rolling the paper of bamboo into a tube, then adding gunpowder and a fuse. A Chinese monk, Li Tian, of the Song Dynasty, is dubbed the official inventor.  Marco Polo than brought fireworks to Europe during the thirteenth century.