L.117

A very rare, extraordinary British lamp from the very famous, renowned silverware manufacturer Elkington & Co. in Birmingham. The lamp is dated March 1862, which is still at the very beginning of the kerosene/paraffin lamp era. It could be that it was initially an oil lamp, the middle part of which consisting of an oil container and oil burner has been lost or replaced at some point*. When I discovered it on eBay UK, it had been fitted with a completely unsuitable brass font that was also too small for the carrier ring. I replaced it luckily with a font made of cut crystal glass.

*Note by Gerd Engelmann, Düren: It is highly probable that this lamp was not originally a lamp at all, but a very sophisticatedly designed centrepiece in which a large glass plate or glass vase, possibly made of cut crystal glass, had been inserted in the metal part. This glass part was probably broken or lost, so that the lower metal part was converted into a lamp by inserting a suitable Kerosene/paraffin font. This is also supported by the very early dating (March 1862) at the bottom of the platform.

The actually very valuable part of the lamp is undoubtedly the lamp body, which consists of a profiled, square platform and 4 very elaborately cast harpies (= winged female beings of Greek mythology) at four corners. The harpies wear a ring at the top into which the font is hung. One of a harpy's feet is broken and welded together. The entire base is stamped and dated Margh (!) 1862 by Elkington. The silver plating is very well preserved; only in the middle of the platform was the silver plating worn off (this would speak more for a crystal vase whose base rested on this platform).

The supplied font was a very simple brass font that sat rather loosely in the ring. This font was certainly not the original one. Originally either a fully silver-plated metal font or an elaborately cut crystal font was included to complete the majestic appearance of the lamp (if it was originally a lamp at all; see Gerd Engelmann's note above). It was an incredible stroke of luck that I was able to find a beautifully cut crystal font on eBay UK that even fits very well into the lamp base! Since this crystal font has a threaded collar instead of the usual bayonet collar, I had to use a threaded Duplex burner.

The Victorian tulip shade for gas lamps with the fine etching, which was also auctioned on eBay UK, matched this lamp perfectly in terms of style. I had to combine a 125 mm shade holder with a globe holder to match the burner. Finally, I had the platform with the worn plating, burner, shade holder and font collar professionally silver-plated. The result is an extraordinarily elegant, old lamp that could stay almost in a museum.

Lamp Data

Added by me:
Glass font, burner, tulip shade and homemade globe holder.

Cleaning and repairs:
Matching globe holder constructed. All added metal parts silver-plated.

Lamp body:
Base made of heavy silver-plated cast bronze or brass, with 4 harpies at four corners, stamped and dated March 1862 by Elkington & Co., on 4 feet, 12 x 12 cm. The harpies are connected to one another with a brass ring to hold a font.
Drop-in font made of clear, multi-cut crystal glass, Ø 158 mm. Silver-plated collar. Font not a genuine part of the lamp.

Burner:
Silver-plated Duplex burner of an unknown producer (perhaps Veritas) with flame extinguisher.
Two wick knobs marked: Duplex. Black glass inserts.
Two flat wicks 26 mm each + transport wick.

Glass chimney:
Duplex chimney with oval bulge. Height 256 mm, Ø fitter 65 mm.
Marked: Griffin-Brand Fireproof Foreign + griffin.

Shade and shade holder:
British tulip shade for gas lamps, frosted glass, orange-red above, fading towards bottom, deep-etched floral pattern, fluted top rim, without slip fitter.
Height 133 mm, Ø bottom opening 106 and top rim 220 mm.
Homemade globe holder made of a 125 mm shade holder and a globe holder for 20’’’ burners.

Lamp dimensions:
Height up to collar 20.0 cm, total height with chimney 50.4 cm.
Total weight 3160 g.