L.203

My wife and I discovered this lamp together with another, far more magnificent lamp (L.204) in a small, southern Italian community, as decoration at a bridal fashion shop. According to the shop owner, both lamps came from a palazzo in Mesagne in Apulia.

This rather squat, yet rather interesting lamp consists of a finely decorated lamp body made of ornamental zinc casting and a large font made of black glass to drop in.

Unfortunately, the seller had glued an old glass shade from a smaller hanging lamp to the suitably cut burner with thick silicone. Actually, the basket of a 10''' burner was stuck in the basket of a Kosmos 14''' burner. Everything was glued together with plenty of silicone. I had to use a scalpel to take all the glued parts apart again and clean the font collar. I replaced the cobbled burner with a 20’’’ Matador burner by Ehrich & Graetz. I cleaned the cast zinc body and re-bronzed it with gold wax.

A beautiful old American tulip shade for gas lamps, a 100 mm globe holder from Great Britain and a Matador chimney from Sweden have completed the lamp quite internationally.

Now the lamp exudes a great deal of dignity again with its new appearance.

Lamp Data

Added by me:
Burner with flame disc, glass chimney, tulip shade and globe holder.

Cleaning and repairs:
Parts glued with silicone (burner and shade) and silicone residues removed. Lamp body primed with shoe polish and bronzed with brass wax.

Lamp body:
Lamp body of ornamentally cast, galvanically bronzed zinc casting. Square base on 4 feet, 13x13 cm.
Vase decorated with two large faces and storks, round, Ø 174 mm. Part of the vase damaged in colour due to the influence of chemicals.
Drop-in font of profiled black glass, Ø 157 mm.

Burner:
20’’’ Matador burner of Ehrich & Graetz, Berlin, with gallery lifter.
Wick knob marked: Logo of Ehrich & Graetz.
Wick knob ring marked: 20''' Matadorbrenner.
Original flame disc, marked: 20''' Matador.
Flat wick 87 mm.

Glass chimney:
20’’’ Matador chimney with slim bulge. Height 267 mm, Ø fitter 65 mm.
Marked: Carl Oerner A.B., Malmö - Böhmiskt Matador 20'''.

Shade and shade holder:
American tulip shade for gas lamps, colourless glass, partially embossed, frosted, deep-etched ornamentation, fluted top rim. Lipped fitter.
Height 120 mm, Ø fitter 100 and top rim 205 mm.
100 mm globe holder for 20’’’ burners.

Lamp dimensions:
Height up to collar 17.3 cm, total height with chimney 47.7 cm.
Total weight 2290 g.