From Jarlshof, Shetland
A fire-steel was a metal object used with flints to create sparks and start a fire. This iron example was found at Jarlshof on Shetland. It was used between 850 and 1000 AD.
The fire-steel (also known as a strike-a-light) is in the most common shape found in Viking settlements and graves in Scandinavia and the British Isles.
Methods to produce fire have always been important. From an early period, flints were struck against suitable stones. Later, fire-steels of iron were used.
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