Tradition has it that the “sky lantern” was invented during the Three Kingdoms period (AD 220-265) by Zhuge Liang, chancellor and regent of the state of Shu Han.
They were first used to transmit military information, differing from the beacon tower method yet ingeniously serving the same function, and are generally recognized as the earliest ancestor of the hot air balloon.
In the early 19th century, the Lantern Festival was brought to Taiwan, where every year at the beginning of the spring planting season, people would release “sky lanterns” into the air as a prayer for the coming year.
It has become very popular all over the world.