Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin eternal flame memorializing losses during World War II .

An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which can be initially ignited by lightning, piezoelectricity or human activity, some of which have burned for hundreds or thousands of years.

In ancient times, eternal flames were fueled by wood or olive oil;[citation needed] modern examples usually use a piped supply of propane or natural gas. Human-created eternal flames most often commemorate a person or event of national significance, serve as a symbol of an enduring nature such as a religious belief, or a reminder of commitment to a common goal, such as diplomacy.

Religious and cultural significance

A chancel lamp hangs above the altar of St. Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran Church

The eternal fire is a long-standing tradition in many cultures and religions. In ancient Iran the atar was tended by a dedicated priest and represented the concept of "divine sparks" or Amesha Spenta, as understood in Zoroastrianism. Period sources indicate that three "great fires" existed in the Achaemenid era of Persian history, which are collectively considered the earliest reference to the practice of creating ever-burning community fires.[1]

The eternal flame was a component of the Jewish religious rituals performed in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem, where a commandment required a fire to burn continuously upon the Outer Altar.[2] Modern Judaism continues a similar tradition by having a sanctuary lamp, the ner tamid, always lit above the ark in the synagogue. After World War II, such flames gained further meaning, as a reminder of the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust. In traditional Christian denominations, such as Catholicism and Lutheranism, a chancel lamp continuously burns as an indication of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.[3]

The Cherokee Nation maintained a fire at the seat of government until ousted by the Indian Removal Act in 1830. At that time, embers from the last great council fire were carried west to the nation's new home in the Oklahoma Territory. The flame, maintained in Oklahoma, was carried back to the last seat of the Cherokee government at Red Clay State Park in south-eastern Tennessee, to the Museum of the Cherokee Indian in Cherokee, North Carolina, and to the Cherokee Nation Tribal Complex in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.[4]

In China, it has at times been common to establish an eternally lit lamp as a visible aspect of ancestor veneration; it is set in front of a spirit tablet on the family's ancestral altar.[5]

In Judaism, there is a concept of a נר תמיד or everlasting flame. This is commonly found hanging in front of the Aron Kodesh (holy ark) in orthodox Synagogues. It is meant as a remembrance of the Temple. Occasionally this flame is a fire which is kept lit 24/7. Other times it is merely electric and stays on all the time.

Extinguished flames

Prismatically broken eternal flame at World War II memorial in East Berlin

Current man-made eternal flames

Europe

Belarus

Belgium

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Eternal Flame in Sarajevo

Bulgaria

Croatia

France

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with eternal flame beneath the Arc de Triomphe in Paris

Germany

Hungary

Ireland

Italy

Latvia

The eternal flame at Brothers' Cemetery, Riga, Latvia

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malta

Moldova

Netherlands

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Russia

Eternal flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Moscow

Serbia

Spain

Switzerland

Transnistria

Ukraine

Eternal Flame in Vinnytsia

United Kingdom

North America

Canada

United States

Eternal flame war memorial in Bowman, South Carolina

Mexico

Nicaragua

South America

The Pira da Liberdade, Brazilian eternal flame, in São Paulo
The Pantheon of Fatherland and Freedom, Tancredo Neves, in Brasília

Argentina

Brazil

Chile

Colombia

Venezuela

Australia and New Zealand

Eternal flame at the Shrine of Remembrance, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Asia

Armenia

Azerbaijan

Bangladesh

Georgia

India

Raj Ghat, Delhi

Indonesia

Api Biru or "Blue Lava" as seen at night on Kawah Ijen, in Indonesia
Kayangan Api, an eternal flame in the middle of teak forest in Bojonegoro

Iran

Zoroastrian Eternal Flame at the Fire Temple in Yazd, Central Iran

Israel

Japan

Peace Flame at the Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima, Japan

Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Bishkek eternal flame

Nepal

Philippines

An eternal flame is featured on the New Design/BSP series Philippine 1000-peso bill.

South Korea

Turkmenistan

Africa

Kenya

Ghana

Zimbabwe

South Africa

Caribbean

Trinidad and Tobago

Cuba

Naturally fueled flames

Fires of Chimera at Yanartaş, Çıralı, Turkey
The Darvaza gas crater, near Derweze, Turkmenistan, has been burning since 1971.
Tour guide cooks pancakes on natural flames at Murchison, New Zealand.

Fueled by natural gas

Fueled by coal seams

See also

References

  1. ^ mondial, UNESCO Centre du patrimoine. "Takht-e Sulaiman". UNESCO Centre du patrimoine mondial.
  2. ^ Leviticus 6:12: "And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings" Biblos Cross-referenced Holy Bible (King James version)
  3. ^ Hall, Ashley (2012). "Sanctuary lamp". Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  4. ^ a b From the First Rising Sun: The Real Prehistory of the Cherokee People and Nation According to Oral Traditions, Legends, and Myths. Charla Jean Morris. Author House, Bloomington, IN: 2011. Page xvii.
  5. ^ "Settling the Dead: Funerals, Memorials, and Beliefs Concerning the Afterlife". Asia for Educators, Columbia University. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  6. ^ Larson, Jennifer Lynn (2001). Greek Nymphs: Myth, Cult, Lore. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 162. ISBN 978-0-19-514465-9.
  7. ^ Pajón Leyra, Irene (2023). "Islands and their marvels as structural principle in the so-called historiographical section of the De mirabilibus auscultationibus". In Stefan Schorn, Robert Mayhew (ed.). Historiography and Mythography in the Aristotelian Mirabilia. Rutgers University Studies in Classical Humanities. Taylor & Francis. p. 133. doi:10.4324/9781003437819-2. ISBN 9781000986105.
  8. ^ "Vayikra (Leviticus): Chapter 6". Jewish Virtual Library.
  9. ^ "Lighting the Perpetual Flame of Brigid - A brief history of the flame". www.kildare.ie.
  10. ^ "Kildare Round Tower and St. Brigid's Fire Temple". September 8, 2010.
  11. ^ "Apagan la "Llama Eterna de la Libertad" encendida por Pinochet". ABC Color (in Spanish). October 19, 2004. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  12. ^ "Merenkulkijoiden ja mereen menehtyneiden muistomerkki". Julkiset veistokset (in Finnish). Helsingin kaupungin taidemuseo. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
  13. ^ Eklund, Ville: Muistomerkin "ikuinen tuli" sammuili jatkuvasti tuulenpuuskiin Helsingissä – kaupunki sammutti tulen: "Ei ole ollut vuosiin ikuinen", MTV Uutiset 3 November 2018. Accessed on 9 January 2021.
  14. ^ "The Eternal Flame". old.brest-fortress.by.
  15. ^ "Pazardzhik became a home of peace" (in Bulgarian). PZ. September 24, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
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  17. ^ Eternal fire at Mamayev Kurgan – photo
  18. ^ Eternal fire at The Square of the Fallen Fighters in Volgograd – photo
  19. ^ "El Ayuntamiento de Madrid instala un pebetero en Cibeles en recuerdo de las víctimas del coronavirus: "Vuestra llama nunca se apagará en nuestro corazón"". Hazte socio de eldiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  20. ^ Wallace, Ellen (December 22, 2012). "Eternal flame in Canton Glarus may go out". Geneva Lunch. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  21. ^ Krummenacher, Jörg (December 22, 2012). "Keine Versöhnung vor dem ewigen Licht". Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  22. ^ "Derry's children united to light flame of peace". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. May 15, 2013. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  23. ^ "Mayor urges vandals to respect city peace flame". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. May 11, 2018. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  24. ^ "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier". UShistory.org. Independence Hall Association. Archived from the original on January 11, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  25. ^ Glenn D. Porter (August 31, 2004). "Eternal Flame Is Out, But Who Cares?". Philly.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  26. ^ "Eternal Flame: Daley Plaza, Chicago, Illinois, 60601". Chicagoarchitecture.info. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  27. ^ "POW/MIA Reflection Pond and Eternal Flame". Ovmp.org. Ohio Veterans Memorial Park. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  28. ^ "Família mantém aceso fogo de chão em fazenda há 200 anos no RS" (in Brazilian Portuguese). G1. September 15, 2014. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  29. ^ "Ministerio de Defensa pagará el gas de la llama de la libertad". Emol (in Spanish). El Mercurio. October 8, 2003. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
  30. ^ Punta Arenas apaga la última Llama de la Libertad que ardía durante todo el año
  31. ^ Peri, Dinakar (January 21, 2022). "Amar Jawan Jyoti merged with flame at National War Memorial". The Hindu. Archived from the original on January 21, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  32. ^ 6 Tempat Wisata Melihat Api Abadi di Indonesia, 5 October 2020. Accessed on 4 February 2021.
  33. ^ The Extinguishing Of The Mrapen Eternal Flame, 2 October 2020. Accessed on 23 March 2023.
  34. ^ Nihonsankei. "Miyajima". The three most scenic spots in Japan. Archived from the original on December 15, 2007. Retrieved June 25, 2007.
  35. ^ Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum (2000). "Guided Tours to Peace Memorial Park and Vicinity". Hiroshima Peace Site. Retrieved June 25, 2007.
  36. ^ "Things to do in Lumbini". BBC. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
  37. ^ "The Red House". Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
  38. ^ Hosgormez, H.; Etiope, G.; Yalçin, M. N. (November 2008). "New evidence for a mixed inorganic and organic origin of the Olympic Chimaera fire (Turkey): a large onshore seepage of abiogenic gas". Geofluids. 8 (4): 263–273. doi:10.1111/j.1468-8123.2008.00226.x.
  39. ^ "The Extinguishing Of The Mrapen Eternal Flame". VOI - Waktunya Merevolusi Pemberitaan. October 2, 2020. Archived from the original on May 22, 2023. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
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