Argand lamp
An oil lamp with a sleeve-shaped wick and glass chimney.
The Argand lamp is an oil lamp invented in 1780 by Aimé Argand. It produced 6 to 10 candelas, making it brighter than earlier lamps, and required much less frequent wick trimming due to more complete combustion. In France it is called a Quinquet, after Antoine-Arnoult Quinquet, who popularized Argand's idea and is sometimes credited with adding the glass chimney.
Quick Facts
- Inventor
- Aimé Argand
- Year of invention
- 1780
- Light output
- 6 to 10 candelas
- Alternative name in france
- Quinquet
- Associated person in france
- Antoine-Arnoult Quinquet
Facts from the source article.
Design
The Argand lamp's burner used a hollow, tube-shaped wick. Air flowed up through the wick's center and around its outside, then into a glass chimney that stabilized the flame and boosted airflow. Early versions had ground glass, sometimes colored, near the wick. Fuel—such as whale, seal, colza, olive, or other vegetable oil—dripped down from a tank above the burner. This top-heavy design cast a shadow on one side. The same idea was used for cooking and boiling water, producing strong, smoke-free heat.
History
Introduced to Thomas Jefferson in Paris in 1784, the lamp gave off light equal to six or eight candles. More complex and costly than earlier lamps, it was first adopted by the wealthy, then spread to the middle classes and eventually the less well-off. Manufactured in many decorative forms, it quickly became popular in America and was used as theatrical footlights. It remained the lamp of choice until about 1850, when kerosene lamps were introduced.
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