Fire starting equipment consists of a small bow whose string encircles and rotates a spindle embedded in a blackened hole in a spruce stick or hearth. The quick high heat produced by the fast rotating spindle ignites a small pile of dried shavings or bark embedded in the hole. Fanning and blowing spread the glowing embers to the blackened hearth and then the lamp. If the spindle is equipped with a hardened copper bit it becomes a drill. | |||
Figure 1 A Copper Inuit man using a bow drill. |
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