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Antique and Vintage Hanging Lamps

Hanging lamps, which include everything from single pendants to elaborate chandeliers, have illuminated interior spaces for thousands of years. The earliest examples were made of clay and fueled by animal fat. Later, oil was used to fire bronze or glass fixtures.

By the Middle Ages, metal chandelier-like fixtures called polycandelons were hung from the...

Gas lamps, which were introduced in the early 1800s, are normally associated with sconces, but hanging gas lamps, called gasoliers, were also used in homes that could afford this newfangled technology. Next came kerosene in 1857. Again, even though we associate kerosene lamps with the chimney-style table lamps made by Aladdin and others, the fuel was also used in hanging Victorian Era lamps.

Because of the heat generated by kerosene and gas lamps, flames were contained by etched glass of various colors—from frosted white to ruby red to multicolored slag—while the lamp’s hardware was typically made of brass. There must have been concerns at the time about the safety of kerosene lamps since they were often advertised as being “non-explosive,” but kerosene lamps burned brighter than gas, so for many the risk was worth it.

While some 19th-century kerosene lamps hung from chains, others were suspended by decorative rods that, in turn, supported a pair, or pairs, of arms. Because kerosene chandeliers required daily maintenance, a pulley was often secreted inside the decorative plate that also hid the lamp’s connection to the ceiling.

As the 20th century dawned and electricity became ubiquitous, many gasoliers and chandeliers were retrofitted. Other types of new hanging lamps included the so-called pan chandeliers, whose light sources were placed at the ends their multiple arms. Then there were hanging lamps that featured Tiffany-like shades over their lights, or clear prismatic glass shades that sent light streaming throughout a room.

The advantage of new hanging lamps, as opposed to retrofitted ones, was that their designs weren't constrained by the presence of fire. Thus, Art Nouveau lamps could be as naturalistic and free-flowing as their designers demanded, while Art Deco fixtures in brushed metal could be accented by shades shaped like bongo drums. By the 1950s and ’60s, the space-age look of Mid-century Modern lamps suggested starbursts and flying saucers, which would hover benignly over nuclear families enjoying meals at their Danish modern dining tables.

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Recent News: Hanging Lamps

Source: Google News

Pioneers In Paradise: An exciting day on old Front Street
TriCities.com, February 4th

He dodged and the brick sailed over his head and shattered a hanging lamp inside the building. Seeing that the woman had exhausted her live ammunition, Stanley, still welding the cane, rushed out, grabbed the woman and proceeded to whip her as you...Read more

Close Encounters TREES TO FOREST: KLARA LIDÉN AT REENA SPAULINGS
Artnet, February 3rd

Also for sale is a weathered hanging lamp that Lidén fashioned from orange traffic cones she lifted from neighborhood streets. ($20000 in an edition of three, all sold.) Those with shallower pockets (and $400) can take home a handmade flip book with...Read more

Cheap Eats: Shea's Grill
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, January 31st

The dining room has spacious oak booths along one wall, each with its own mirror and hanging lamp, a roomy line of banquet seating in the center, and a couple dining room tables just like you'd find at your grandparents' home about three decades ago...Read more

Turn Your Old Airbus A300 Into a Lovely Hanging Lamp
Gizmodo, January 30th

If you're anything like me, you like to keep your fleet of private jets up to date. But selling an old Airbus on Craigslist can be a pain, so artist Paul Coudamy hacks them apart and turns them into hanging lamps. His F-Light—a chandelier for aviation...Read more

Thieves steal elderly Pincher Creek couple's beloved antique collection
Calgary Herald, January 30th

with three sleeves and 5 oak chairs (two captain and two dinning) — Five oak dinning room chairs (not part of the above set) — Antique cylinder record player with 150 cylinder records — Kerosene chandelier hanging lamp — two other kerosene...Read more

Cutting Edge in New Milford
Litchfield County Times, January 27th

AMEICO might broker one of these big-market customers a wholesale deal on lighting, like the the Estadio hanging lamp, which is an oversized halo of light designed in 2002 by Spaniard Miguel Mila. Timepieces and other accessories are popular,...Read more

Leading lights - new lamps on the block
The Guardian (blog), January 26th

At the cheapest end is this pretty little hanging lamp with a slightly blue shade: £45 + VAT from Retrouvius or for a more Borgen feel, check out the Communist downlighters (£210) at Trainspotters. Worth it, just for the name...Read more

eBay watch: Colani 1960s space age hanging lamp
Retro To Go, January 11th

Not the first time we have featured this design, but as they rarely come up for sale, this Colani 1960s space age hanging lamp is well worth mentioning again. Either late '60s or early 1970s, this lamp is perfect is you are creating a space age look in...Read more