19Th Century Gilt Bronze Sinumbra Fluid Lamp

A very rare early 19th Century Gilt Bronze Sinumbra Fluid Lamp

original green painted tole ware finish with turned brass architectural elements. The lamp is now fully electrified from converted gas, age related wear and patina.

The lamp also has its original etched glass shade with pierced bronze chimney.

On the base a steel punched french patent plaque with the reference to Moiré métallique:

“A specialized decorative crystallized or “watered silk” finish applied to tinplate (fer-blanc) or other metals, which became extremely popular in France and Europe during the early 19th century after its introduction around 1819”

The word “Sinumbra” is Latin for “without shadow” referring to the way that the lamp allowed the light
to shine into a room. The light source is in the centre of the circular tank that would have originally held the oil to be burned. In the beginning, whale oil would have been used in the lamp but eventually kerosene became more
popular and replaced the use of whale oil. The main idea was to have a “contrasting”/different type of light compared to the more elaborate Argand lamps that were around at the time. The problem with Argand lamps was that their ornate decoration [on the lamp stands] often created a shadow. In response, the Sinumbra lamp has a simpler, but still elegant, design that decreased the shadowing effect and allowed the light to shine more
brightly.

Totally untouched and original. 69vm in height, shade diameter 25cm

French, circa 1820