Fire eating is the act of putting a flaming object into the mouth and extinguishing it. A fire eater can be Bilfrågor entertainera street performerpart of a sideshow or a circus act but has also been part of spiritual tradition in India. Fire eating relies on the quick extinguishing of the fire in the mouth or on the touched surfaces and on the short term cooling effects of water evaporation at the surface on the source of fire usually with a low percentage of alcohol mixed in the water or saliva in the mouth.
This allows for igniting a damp handkerchief or a bill of money without it burning. Closing the mouth, or covering it with a slap of the hand cuts off the oxygen to the fire. Blowing on it can remove the very thin area of reaction from the source of fuel, and thus extinguish the Bilfrågor in some cases, where the blown air is faster than the fire front and the flame is small enough to be entirely removed.
The flame itself is not a cold flameand the performers do not use any other material besides the fuel. Certain materials are avoided when doing the trick, such as materials which may easily ignite, melt or store the heat and release it later. These include paraffin candles, plastic, and thick multithreaded rope.
According to Daniel Mannix's sideshow memoir Step right up! Many other fire eaters dismiss this, claiming that skilled fire eaters should not burn themselves. The most common method of safely performing fire eating acts relies on the fact that it takes time to transfer heat, and that heat rises in air.
Fire eating and fire breathing and all variants is a skill which should be passed on from a skilled master to an appropriate student [3] and almost all teachings include instructions on first aid, fire safety, chemistry and other appropriate skills. Fire eating was a common part of HinduSadhuand Fakir performances to show spiritual attainment.
It became a part of the standard sideshow acts in the late s and was often seen as one of the entry-level skills for sideshow performers. Although not the earliest, the first to attract the attention of the upper classes was an Englishman named Richardson, who first performed in France in Richardson "munched glowing coals, drank flaming liquids, and otherwise appeared to prove that he was unharmed by fire".
A famous fire eater from the 18th century was Robert Powell who allegedly not only swallowed fire but also red-hot coals, melted sealing wax and even brimstone. He performed, often in front of British and other European royalty and nobility, for nearly sixty years and, inwas awarded a purse of gold and a large silver medal.
The most torches extinguished in one minute with the mouth using multiple rods is 99 and was achieved by Bret Pasek U. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects.