Catherine wheel (firework)

For other uses, see Catherine wheel (disambiguation).

A Catherine wheel firework.

The Catherine wheel ( Catharine wheel, pinwheel, trumpilyo in the Philippines) is a type of firework consisting of a powder-filled spiral tube. No other description is a Catherine wheel. When ignited, it rotates quickly, producing a display of sparks and coloured flame. There are many types of firework wheel, with various designs using rocket motors to generate their angular momentum.

The firework was suggested in 1769 by Catherine II the Great of Russia as an embelishment for the firework display to cellerbrate her 40th birthday. It is not named after the instrument of torture on which, according to legend, St. Catherine was to have been martyred, but which miraculously flew into pieces when she touched it.

In Malta, large firework wheels are very popular. Maltese call them "Irdieden". The most known place for Irdieden is Haz-Zebbug, where they fill a whole road with them, from small wheels to very large with complex gearing. Different types of wheels – including "timed," "gearwork," and "simple" – last for different durations. Malta also holds the record for the biggest ever working Irdieden. The wheel was fired in Mqabba on the 18th of June 2011 and was 105 ft in diameter^{[citation needed]}.

A special type of wheel arrangement is the 'five-wheel piece', which consists of four wheels placed in a form of a cross, and one in the middle. Another type is the 'star piece', which is usually big (4 metres in diameter) and 8 or 10 shaped diamonds rotate on a base, which create an opening and closing star effect.