From KCRW, this is Nokter.

Nokter. Candles have become sort of cliche in modern culture. The first thing I think of is spah retreats and gimmicky

spirituality, scented votives and cucumber water. Then I do think about religion,

but I'm not religious so it's the most superficial of associations.

Quick images come to mind of church altars and monorras,

but without the deep remaining to give weight to the practices.

Next I picture romantic dinners. weight to the practices.

Next I picture romantic dinners at fancy restaurants, which I love, but the candles there

are decorative frivolous.

Even in a blackout, the candles are backups in case the batteries for the flashlights are dead.

Did you know that the first known candles are thought to have been made by ancient Egyptians in

3,000 BC?

They used rushlights formed by dipping reeds in fat or Greece.

The ancient Romans are credited with inventing the first wicked candle.

They melted tallow, which is animal fat, and poured it over fibers of flax, hemp, or cotton,

which was used as a wick.

Cultures around the world independently developed candles. The Chinese used whale fat.

Japanese used extracts from trees.

Indians boiled the fruit of the cinnamon tree for wax.

Candle wax has been made from fish, yack butter, of course, bees wax.

Most modern candles are made from paraffin, which is a byproduct of petroleum refining.

All this is to say humans have been making candles to push back the night for a long, long time.

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