ANTIQUE OIL LAMPS
Antique Oil Lamps are still enjoyed for their practicality and beauty. If the electricity should go out, you will find these beautiful glass accents an asset to your home. Oil lamps come in an array of sizes, shapes and colors, including painted, not painted, metal, glass, frosted, porcelain, imported from China, Japan and more.
Oil lamps or wick lamps have tanks that hold oil and have an absorbent wick that sits in the oil and can be lit, producing heat or light. Prior to their invention in the 1800s, candles, pitch oil lamps and animal fat lamps were used. Once the development of kerosene made mass producing lamps profitable, oil lamps were fabricated from metal, glass, porcelain, and other ceramics.
Probably the most sought-after qualities of these collectibles are the lamp’s chimney or shade. Some chimneys have been hand blown, free-form, some with limited-production chimneys with peddle tops and frothed or etched designs which are more scarce and in demand than machine-made examples. Glass shades would be bought from such companies like Fostoria or Consolidated and the oil lamp manufacturers would make the metal parts (the base and burner).
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Shades were made with a wide variety of materials. Milk glass, because of it’s inexpensive cost, was used for the plain opal shades. Another glass called Case glass was also used, combining two different layers of glass with the inside white to reflect more light and the outside colored (the green and white combination is quite common). In the more expensive category are the art glass shades: satin glass, amberina, cranberry, and mother of pearl.
Originally founded in Chicago in 1908 as “The Mantle Lamp Company of America,” Aladdin Industries Inc. was considered the maker of the finest non-electrical lamps in the world. Their oil lamps were so bright, the company offered a thousand dollars to anyone who could show them an oil lamp that matched the brightness, and no one ever did. Aladdin was unique in its use of so-called “moonstone” glass, a milky white glass that shone like the moon when the lamp was lit.
Oil lamps are very easy to find at antique markets, shops or on-line sites, and are not only a beautiful accent piece, but can be a very practical and essential houseware in the event of a power blackout. If you arere looking for one of these, it’s a good idea to ensure that the metal mechanism is still securely fastened to the lamp, is not rusted and seized, and that the wick can easily roll up or down. Replacement wicks and lamp oil can be found at most hardware stores. As with any candle or fuel burning item, care should be taken when operating these lamps, and they should not be left unattended.
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