Tinsel

Tinsel, is a type of decorative material that mimics the effect of ice, consisting of thin strips of sparkling material attached to a thread. When in long narrow strips not attached to thread, it is called "lametta", and emulates icicles. It was originally a metallic garland for Christmas decoration. The modern production of tinsel typically involves plastic, and is used particularly to decorate Christmas trees. It may be hung from ceilings or wrapped around statues, lampposts, and so on. Modern tinsel was invented in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1610, and was originally made of shredded silver.

According to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, the word is from the Old French word estincele, meaning “sparkle”.

History

Tinsel was invented in Nuremberg around 1610. Tinsel was originally made from extruded strands of silver. Because silver tarnishes quickly, other shiny metals were substituted. Before the 16th century, tinsel was used for adorning sculptures rather than Christmas trees. It was added to Christmas trees to enhance the flickering of the candles on the tree. Tinsel was used to represent the starry sky over a Nativity scene.

Tinsel (codename)

The codename Tinsel referred to a type of equipment carried by RAF bombers and used for jamming Luftwaffe night-fighter controllers' speech radio-frequencies during the Second World War.

The equipment consisted of an audio microphone mounted inside one of the bomber's engine nacelles, the output of which fed into the aircraft's standard R1155 radio transmitter/receiver. The wireless operator could listen in to the frequencies used by the defending forces and then, when he heard a German transmission, tune his transmitter into the Luftwaffe frequency and transmit the amplified engine-noise on the same frequency, thus jamming the enemy transmission.

Although not very effective as a jammer - the noise produced merely acted as background noise to the transmitted speech - Tinsel did have the effect of making the night-fighter crews' job of distinguishing the instructions received from the ground more difficult.

See also

List of World War II electronic warfare equipment

Tinsel (disambiguation)

Tinsel is a metallic material used for ornamentation, notably including Christmas decorations. It may also refer to:

See also