when watching films which depict either angry mobs or the film is set in a time period before the use of flashlights or outdoor lighting, people are shown running about at night with torches.
what was the fuel they used on these torches, did they really last hours and hours and were they (the torches) truly impervious to inclement weather? could one purchase a torch or did everyone have a few sitting around their sheds or houses at the time?
help me separate fact from fiction.
I don’t know about the mobs (the historical evidence of a mob with torches storming Frankenstein’s castle is inconclusive), but, yes, they had torches. Usually the tip was some flammable substance – pitch, for instance. It was smeared on rags and tied around the end of a branch. The pitch or oil could stand up to a certain amount of wetness once it got going.
You didn’t purchase a torch – you made your own. In medieval times, there was even an occupation – linkman – who was paid to guide people at night. So if you were carousing past dark at the local inn, you’d find a linkman outside and, for a small fee, he’d light your way home.
“Pitch” could mean either pitch from pine, or naturally occuring asphalt, from tar pits.
Foxfire 4 talks about making pitch from pine. You heat a pitch pine log and resin (pitch) runs out the other end.
You could also use something called a “pine knot torch”.
http://hv.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=004Bxb
I’ve never had any actual personal experience with torches, but I would say that yes, they are probably reasonably rain-proof (ever tried to put out an oil fire with water?), and that they probably burn longer than just a stick of wood.