Promethean Match
In 1829 Samuel Jones invented the Promethean match - named after Prometheus who, according to Greek legend, stole fire from the gods. The match was composed of a vial of sulphuric acid wrapped in paper impregnated with sulphur, sugar and KClO3. The vial was crushed to release the acid that would ignite the treated paper. Some foolhardy users of the match used to crush the vial with their teeth...

"I carried with me some promethean matches, which I ignited by biting; it was thought so wonderful that a man should strike fire with his teeth, that it was usual to collect the whole family to see it."
Charles Darwin: The Voyage of the Beagle, ch iii (1839)

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