Lighting covers all the devices used to illuminate interiors and exteriors, and antique lighting is one of the most popular and practical areas of collecting. It includes candlesticks, candelabra, chandeliers, wall sconces, lanterns, oil lamps, gas fittings, table and floor lamps, ceiling pendants and outdoor lights.
The history of lighting follows changes in technology. Candles and rush lights dominated until the late eighteenth century, when the Argand oil lamp greatly improved brightness. Colza and paraffin lamps followed, then gas lighting from the early nineteenth century and electric light from the 1880s. Each development produced new forms, and many earlier fittings were later converted, so antique lighting often has a layered history. Materials include brass, bronze, gilt metal, silver, glass, crystal, porcelain, wood and iron, in styles from Georgian and Regency to Victorian, Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau and Art Deco. Antique lights should be professionally restored and rewired before use, and they bring a warmth and individuality to interiors that modern fittings rarely match.
