Greg, my editor asked

Would you be up for writing a short piece – say 500-ish words – on your research for the Eye of Isis books and ABDUCTION OF A SLAVE in particular? Would be great for the Sales teams and we could also use it in our newsletter closer to publication.

(Please note, he cleverly timed this request between the Friday I finally submitted Isis4, aka Abduction of a Slave, and the Monday I left on vacation.)

So I did, but only after I got permission to share it with you.

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He found a small oil lamp in the kitchen. A handful of dead weeds made a spill which kindled at the first strike of the firesteel he always carried at his belt. The wick was nearly dried out but lit with a little coaxing. He waiting for the flame to steady, and carried it to the door. Holding the lamp high in one hand, he pushed the door all the way open with the other.

A paragraph from Abduction of a Slave, the fourth Eye of Isis novel. Pretty straightforward, am I right? Uncle Neb is searching what appears to be an abandoned home in Cyrene and needs a light to show him the way.

But lighting a lamp 2,000 years ago isn’t like flicking a switch today. He couldn’t use a lighter, obviously, although I have no doubt those Roman legionnaires would have cherished their Zippos every bit as much as any WWII infantryman did theirs. 

Okay, than, he’d have to use a match.

(Rabbit hole: “A note in the text Cho Keng Lu, written in 1366, describes a sulfur match, small sticks of pinewood impregnated with sulfur, used in China by “impoverished court ladies” in AD 577 during the conquest of Northern Qi.” —“Match,” Wikipedia.)

Nope, Neb won’t be able to use a match for another 600 years. Fine, then, what did they use back then? Flint and steel? 

Was there even steel by Roman times?

(Rabbit hole: “Gladius,” Wikipedia. I didn’t surface for hours. Did you know the Romans stole the gladius technology from Hannibal?)

The official term for flint and steel is fire striker, more generally “percussion fire striking.” 

(Rabbit hole: “There are indications that the Iceman, also known as Ötzi, may have used iron pyrite to make fire.“—Fire striker,” Wikipedia. See also “Ötzi,” a name familiar to every crime fiction writer alive or should be, as he is the first known murder victim.)

“Fire striker” was too much of a mouthful so I was pleased when I stumbled across a reference calling it “firesteel.” I declare henceforward all my Eye of Isis characters will carry a firesteel in their belt pouches. There, done, a taken-for-granted everyday implement, like a spatula, or the Universal Translator on Star Trek.

(Rabbit hole: “The word spatula derives from the Latin word for a flat piece of wood or splint, a diminutive form of the Latin spatha, meaning ‘broadsword’, and hence can also refer to a tongue depressor.”—“Spatula,” Wikipedia. You can’t get away from sword lore when you’re looking up stuff about Rome.)

Meandering from Google to Wikipedia to Reddit/r/AskHistorians, somehow I found myself on Etsy, where some guy in Dippoldiswalde, Germany, has a shop called PeraPeris, where he sells handmade recreations of historical objects like “broches” and “fibulas” and “bracers,” and, yes, fire steels.

Let’s get real for a minute here: I could have written, He found and lit a lamp. Back in the day I would have, because then I saved up my questions and went to the library once a week for answers. My editor wouldn’t have cared. The readers wouldn’t even have noticed. He lit a lamp, Dana, now get on with the damn story.

But it wouldn’t have been half as much fun, and I wouldn’t have ended up the proud owner of my own firesteel. 

With instructions.

Next Saturday, January 25th, is the day I launch the fourth Eye of Isis novel at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona!
Where I will be giving away the firesteel above to the lucky person whose number I call out at the end of the event. You must buy a copy of the book so you’ll have a receipt with a number on it. So…
Click through here to order your signed copy of the first edition.
Click here for the Kindle US edition.
Click here for the Kindle UK edition.

If you can’t make it in person you can watch on Facebook Live or on YouTube.

And to catch you up, here are the first three in the series–

Death of an Eye  introduces us to Tetisheri, lifelong friend of Cleopatra, the Lady of Two Lands and ruler of Egypt. The queen’s Eye is struck down in the streets of Alexandria and Cleopatra tasks her friend to find the murderer and bring them to justice.
Disappearance of a Scribe  Tetisheri’s first official case as the new Eye of Isis. A scribe goes missing and leads to an investigation of corruption, bribery, and murder in Alexandria’s building trades.
Theft of an Idol   The most popular actor in Alexandria is kidnapped and the queen asks Tetisheri find her and return her to her adoring fans. The journey takes Tetisheri and the Five Soldiers to Memphis, deep into the depravity and degradation of the eldest temple and even deeper into the heart of the tombs of the dead.

Chatter Eye of Isis Abduction of a Slave Ancient Rome Battle of Thapsus Isis4