On the history of fireworks

Remember Marco Polo? A native of Venice, he is remembered for traveling the Silk Road to China. Marco was a Christian man and his travels have been studied down through the years. Travel was difficult in that era and Marco recorded his travels and difficulties to be passed on in the annals of time.

It is said that Marco Polo was impressed with the fireworks in the country of China while he was there. Especially the rockets. He was told that when shot into the air, they would explode, making noise and creating magnificent colorful patterns.

The problem was that many Chinese people made fireworks, but not many wanted to demonstrate how they worked. Time after time he was told, yes we make fireworks but we will not shoot them in the air here.

Finally he was told of a place where the fireworks were shot in the air every night. The place was an old military stronghold at the community of “Chu Lai”.

When Marco Polo arrived there, he asked the question, Why here?

The simple answer, he was told, is that it is a Chinese tradition to set off fireworks on the “Forts of Chu Lai”