History
The draft 2003 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary lists the earliest known usage of the concept as being in L. Chatterton's book Modern Cookery published in 1943: "Afternoon tea scones… Time: 20 minutes. Temperature: Gas, Regulo Mark 7". "Regulo" was a type of gas regulator used by a manufacturer of cookers; however, the scale has now become universal, and the word Regulo is rarely used.
The term "gas mark" was a subject of the joint BBC/OED TV series Balderdash & Piffle, in May 2005, which sought to establish the history of the term. The earliest printed evidence of use of "gas mark" (with no other terms between the two words) appears to date from 1958. However, the manufacturers of the "New World" gas ranges in the mid-1930s gave away recipe books for use with their cooker, and the "Regulo" was the gas regulator. The book has no reference to degrees, either in Fahrenheit or (as then) Centigrade. All dishes to be cooked are noted to be at "Regulo Mark X".
Read more about this topic: Gas Mark
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