[Sca-cooks] Candles

[Robyn.Hodgkin at affa.gov.au]

Stefan wrote:
Okay. In period about all you had for candles were beeswax and tallow.
Sometimes a mixture of both. The beeswax candles got used in the Church
and perhaps some of the wealthy folks. Everyone else got stuck with
the slightly more smoky and stinky tallow candles.

Just to note; very very slightly more stinky and not at all smokey tallow candles.

My friend Tanw heard that tallow candles were smokey and smelly.  He wondered if it was really true, and in true Tanw style decided to make some to find out*. Certainly I gather that the processing of the tallow was smelly in a kind of "lamby" fashion, but I can testify from my own experience that the finished candles burnt with a good clear smokeless flame, and you could only detect a smell if you got close to it. (ie. almost burn your nose close)

Tallow candles being smokey and stinky is a myth.

Kiriel
* that sense of curiosity is why Mr Nw (as he is affectionately known) is now Master Nw. (pronouced sort of like Tahnoo; for short Mr Noo)