Bouillotte Whale Lamp -French?-

Hello everybody,

Today I received this lamp that I've bought online.

It's a Bouillotte whale lamp.
(In English I believe they call it a whale or lucerne lamp.)

In dutch they call it "(Small) God's Lamp".

The lamp is electrified. (Not drilled)
Most likely to be French?

I'd really like to know more about it.
(Material, age, origin, value)

I assume the lamp is complete.
See pictures below!


Thank you very much in advance!
R. Antonis

 

Welcome... Nice lamp. Material looks to be brass. I am sure others will show up and be able to tell you more. There are also some lamp sites which would provide more info. They will not give you value, but dates etc.. might even be able to determine makers. Wait a bit and see what the forum people have to add. Good luck.

 

Hmmmm, it didn't start life as a Bouillotte lamp. At birth it was strictly a 4 spout whale oil lamp. Sometime later someone not only converted it to electricity, but also repurposed it to resemble a Bouillotte lamp. The original spout lamp looked like this. Yours seem to still have some of the hanging tools.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-18th-19th-c-Brass-Whale-Oil-Burning-Lamp-2-Wick-with-Tools/282368070273?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid=222007&algo=SIC.MBE&ao=1&asc=41393&meid=5e6f98265b224e90964479db816e58ee&pid=100011&rk=3&rkt=5&sd=182432953402

Nowwww some people have successfully repurposed these spout lamps. Repurposing old lightening to me is a sacrilege like painting a mahogany burl wood secretary pink. Here is one that has been sucessfully repurposed to a Bouillotte lamp.

https://www.lamplightershoppe.com/p...-converted-to-electric-with-green-metal-shade

--- Susan

 

not the 1st to have bulbs stuck on it......

 

I really didn't go into trying to date the 4 spout oil lamp. As you already know they were also called Lucerna lamps as well as Venetian lamps. I can't tell how old yours is. There are many reproductions out there. Following are links telling about them that you may have seen already.
http://www.silvercollection.it/dictionaryoillamp.html

The following is a link to a pdf file titled: "The Evolution of the Lamp" on the
Scroll down to page "10 of 34" to Fig. 40. Here is a pic of 3 of them. Page "14 of 34", 4th and 5th paragraphs, of the file tells a little about them starting with "Before taking up the rvolution of the oil lamp...."
https://www.ies.org/PDF/100Papers/044.pdf

I have no idea of the country of origins.

--- Susan

 

Oil yes

Whale no

 

Thank you all very much!!
Too bad the lamp isn't marked or anything.
Would make it easier to trace back.

I'm just wondering where it was made.

By the way.. is it recommended to USE this lamp
as an oil lamp again? How does it work? Do I have to
put wicks in the 4 spouts? And how to keep them from falling back in.
(might be a stupid question haha) Or don't you need wicks at all