Huge Sconce or former Gaslamp, how old?

Discussion in 'Metalware' started by opoe, Aug 23, 2017.

  1. opoe

    opoe Well-Known Member

    From my belgian uncle's shed. 2017-08-17 15.16.42small.jpg 2017-08-17 15.17.22small.jpg
     

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    opoe, Aug 23, 2017
    #1
    Bev aka thelmasstuff, Ghopper1924, Any Jewelry and 1 other person like this.
  2. Bakersgma

    Bakersgma Well-Known Member

    Do you know when household electric service became common in Belgium?
     
    Bakersgma, Aug 23, 2017
    #2
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  3. Bakersgma

    Bakersgma Well-Known Member

    And I should have asked first - are they fitted for electric lamp bulbs now?
     
    Bakersgma, Aug 23, 2017
    #3
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  4. opoe

    opoe Well-Known Member

    They were, with the wiring still covered in some sort of fabric and connected by some porcelain thingie(my uncle took the fittings out and used it as a candelabra for a while, then it ended up in the shed for some reason, I have scraped of candlewax and polished it a bit)...this is an area of expertise where my english is probably not sufficient...;)

    In the netherlands it was around 1920, but gaslamps were back in use during WWII, do not know about belgium though.
     
    opoe, Aug 23, 2017
    #4
  5. Bakersgma

    Bakersgma Well-Known Member

    Well, I would *think* that if it was originally made for electricity or candles, there would be no reason to fit it with what appear to be gas valve keys. Wouldn't someone buying a fixture for the "newfangled" electric light not want to appear old-fashioned?

    Maybe I'm way off, but that's the way it strikes me.
     
    Bakersgma, Aug 23, 2017
    #5
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  6. opoe

    opoe Well-Known Member

    A lot of gaslamps and candelabras/ chandeliers got wired for electricity later and I think that happened to this one too... it is just remarkable how many phases of life this thing has gone through... I wonder though, is it early 20th century or late nineteenth or even older?
     
    opoe, Aug 23, 2017
    #6
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  7. moreotherstuff

    moreotherstuff Izorizent

    That pendant at the lowest point, is it a valve or a switch? Does it turn (or look like it might have at some time)?
    zzzzaa.jpg
     
    moreotherstuff, Aug 23, 2017
    #7
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  8. johnnycb09

    johnnycb09 Well-Known Member

    It looks 1880s or so to me.
     
    johnnycb09, Aug 23, 2017
    #8
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  9. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    The first public electrical power plant in The Netherlands was built in 1886 in Kinderdijk:
    [​IMG]
    http://www.willemsmithistorie.nl/in...le-kinderdijk-125-jaar-19-04-1886-19-04-2011-

    There were private electricity systems before that.
    I am sure Belgium, which was more industrialized than The Netherlands, would have had electricity around the same time.
    There was still electricity during WWII, one of the reasons why the Philips factories (light bulbs) in Endhoven could save many Jews by saying they were indispensable in their development and production departments.
     
    Last edited: Aug 24, 2017
    Any Jewelry, Aug 24, 2017
    #9
    Ghopper1924 and judy like this.
  10. verybrad

    verybrad Well-Known Member

    I am fine with a circa 1880 date for this.
     
    verybrad, Aug 24, 2017
    #10
    Ghopper1924 and johnnycb09 like this.
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