Pair of Lacquered Brass Figural Sinumbra Argand Lamps, circa 1835

View Similar Items

Neoclassical Black and Ormolu Bronze Sinumbra Base Table Lamp, circa 1835

Antique Argand Sinumbra Bronze & Brass Solar Lamp with Opalescent Glass Shade

Pair of Cast Brass & Tole Neoclassical Sinumbra Style Lamps

Pair of Lacquered Wood and Brass Lamps, circa 1970

Ormolu Corinthian Column Sinumbra Base Table Lamps, France, circa 1825

Pair of American Gilt Bronze and Crystal Argand Lamps, Philadelphia. Circa 1820

French Sinumbra Table Lamp

A Pair Of Tall Lucite And Lacquered Brass Column Table Lamps

Pair of Italian Brass Figural and Decorative Foliage Prickets, Circa 1760

Pair of Neoclassical Style Brass and White Lacquered Table Lamps

Pair of Neo-Classical Figural Lamps

Set of American Gilt Bronze Urn Foliage Argand Lamps w/ Cherub Winged Feet 1820

1 of 1

Pair of Lacquered Brass Figural Sinumbra Argand Lamps, circa 1835

$32,500List Price

About the Item

Messenger & Sons, 1832-1849. London, circa 1835. The cut, etched and blown glass shades on a flattened doughnut-shaped font supported by fuel tubes above a bronze acanthus-flower drip-cup above the figure of Atlas supporting the world on his shoulders, standing on an octagonal stepped and raised plinth with bearded visages facing out at each corner. The base plate marked Messenger & Sons. A “sinumbra” lamp works on the Argand burner principal but the "font" or oil reserve is in the shape of a flattened doughnut, allowing light to stream directly down through the hole onto a table without the font blocking or casting a shadow, hence “without shade.” Argand's invention, developed initially with Matthew Bolton and James Watt in England, was subsequently manufactured by a host of makers in Birmingham including Messenger, Johnston-Brookes, Phipson & Lambley, Fletcher & Day, T.C. Salt and Ratcliff. Messenger first appeared in the Birmingham city directory as Messenger & Phipson in 1797, and iterations of the firm survived into the 20th century. Messenger was among the largest and most successful of the many manufacturers of lighting based in Birmingham, England, who exported their products to the United States. Virtually all Argand lamps in America prior to 1830 were imported from England and sold through retailers in the major cities on the Northeast seaboard, often "private labeled" at the factories. Hailed by Rees in his encyclopedia of 1819 The Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature saying "it may be justly ranked among the greatest discoveries of the age" and by Benjamin Franklin who noted it was "much admired for its splendor," Argand's invention was the most important advancement in home lighting since the discovery of fire. The design of Argand lamps took many forms, usually inspired by such widely-known images of classical antiquity as those published by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, a veritable lexicon of classical symbols, or drawn, in the same spirit, from Greek and Roman myths. In his highly influential 1778, Vassi, candelabri, cippi, sarcofagi, tripodi, lucerne, ed ornamenti antichi...Piranesi published a "Granite cistern supported by four fauns resting on a base," from Cardinal Albani's Villa dell' Emo, which is the likely source for the figure of Atlas in these lamps. In the early 19th century, the appropriateness of the using the iconic Atlas, the Titan condemned to hold up the dome of heaven, as a lamp base would have been broadly appreciated by elite consumers of luxury products such as these. Geneva-born philosopher and inventor Francois-Pierre-Ami Argand (1750-1803), received a British patent for his lamps, developed a few years earlier in Paris, on March 15th, 1784 (patent no. 1425). His invention which promised "a lamp that is so constructed to produce neither smoak [sic.] nor smell, and to give considerably more light than any lamp hitherto known" consisted of a tubular wick held between metal tubes with a central air vent, a rack and pinion wick riser assembly and a tall, narrow chimney that fit closely around the wick causing hot air to be drawn up through the center of the flame as well as around its outside creating more thorough combustion. It was designed to burn rape-seed (colza) and whale oil, issuing from an oil reserve or “font” positioned so that the oil would flow from the force of gravity to the burner.

Creator:
Messenger and Sons (Manufacturer)
Dimensions:
Height: 33.5 in (85.09 cm)Diameter: 11 in (27.94 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 2
Style:
Neoclassical (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Brass,Lacquered
Place of Origin:
England
Period:
1830-1839
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1835
Condition:
Condition: Excellent: The lacquered patination has been restored to its original appearance. The burners are intact.
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
Seller: L-12092411stDibs: LU135622385032

Antique 1830s European Neoclassical Table Lamps

Materials

Brass, Bronze, Ormolu, Wire

Neoclassical Black and Ormolu Bronze Sinumbra Base Table Lamp, circa 1835

$3,875

Antique Argand Sinumbra Bronze & Brass Solar Lamp with Opalescent Glass Shade

Located in Big Flats, NY

Antique Argand Sinumbra Crystal, Bronze & Brass Solar Lamp with Floral Etched Opalescent Glass Shade & Marble Base c1840 Measures - 22 1/4" x 8 1/4" x 8 1/4"

Category

Antique Early 19th Century American Table Lamps

Materials

Crystal, Marble, Brass

Antique Argand Sinumbra Bronze & Brass Solar Lamp with Opalescent Glass Shade

$760 Sale Price

20% Off

Pair of Cast Brass & Tole Neoclassical Sinumbra Style Lamps

Located in Hudson, NY

This pair of very dramatic tall cast & tole neoclassical sinumbra style lamps with frosted etched glass shades appear to be antique from the 1820s however are made circa 1930. Cast in heavy brass and tole painted they are most probably European in origin and are in excellent condition. The base is decorated with encircling putti sandwiched in between two architectural brass circular panels. A reeded tole column rises up out of acanthus leaves and is topped by a capital decorated with acanthus leaves. The shades are frosted and etched to clear created a very pleasing and atmospheric glow. The tole painting...

Category

Mid-20th Century Neoclassical Table Lamps

Materials

Brass

Pair of Cast Brass & Tole Neoclassical Sinumbra Style Lamps

$3,150 / item

Pair of Lacquered Wood and Brass Lamps, circa 1970

Located in Saint-Ouen, FR

Pair of lacquered wood and brass lamps, circa 1970. Wear and stains on the lampshades.

Category

Vintage 1970s European Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Brass

Pair of Lacquered Wood and Brass Lamps, circa 1970

$1,630 / item

Ormolu Corinthian Column Sinumbra Base Table Lamps, France, circa 1825

Located in Kinderhook, NY

An exquisite pair of neoclassical Corinthian column form table lamps converted to electricity in the early 20th century from circa 1825 French Sinumbra oil lamp bases, the lost-wax-c...

Category

Antique Early 19th Century French Neoclassical Table Lamps

Materials

Metal, Brass, Ormolu

Ormolu Corinthian Column Sinumbra Base Table Lamps, France, circa 1825

$7,500 / set

Pair of American Gilt Bronze and Crystal Argand Lamps, Philadelphia. Circa 1820

Located in Charleston, SC

Pair of American two arm git bronze and crystal argand lamps with centered crystal reservoirs surmounted by gilt swans, original etched floral globes with prisms, terminating on trip...

Category