BulbCollector Forums
BULB DISCUSSION BOARDS => Antique Bulb Discussion => Topic started by: brykyldanthom on February 15, 2004, 06:13:00 pm
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Hello: I have an early (1910) bulb marked "Austria" that is shaped like the top of a gas street lamp, or street lantern. Is there any info regarding these early bulbs with distinct shapes other than the standard bulb shape? Rarity? Valuable? Any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you! Julie
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Welcome to the bulb collector's forum Julie.
There are a few books on the subject of collecting figural light bulbs but they are geared towards smaller Christmas figural bulbs. The bulb you have was intended to be used throughout the year in a decorative lamp. There are two different versions of the Austrian street lantern but they came in many different color combinations. The shape of the bulb determines if the bulb is common or not. Here are some examples to compare with what you have. This first bulb is the common shape that was produced in many different color combinations:
(http://www.bulbcollector.com/photos/fg0029.jpg)
This may be the most common large vintage figural that you will find today. Because of this they are not overly valuable to collectors. Some color combinations may be rarer than others, but I am not sure.
This picture illustrates another shape that was made in Austria during the same era:
(http://www.bulbcollector.com/photos/fg0021.jpg)
This particular shape is somewhat scarce but value depends on the person buying it. Most bulb collectors usually shun large figurals like this, while someone with a vintage lamp looking for a replacement bulb may pay top dollar to restore their lamp back to original condition.
Among Austria, these bulbs were also produced in Germany and Japan. They took on many different figural forms, some of which can be viewed here (http://www.bulbcollector.com/cgi-bin/imageFolio.cgi?direct=Antique_Light_Bulbs/Medium_Based_Figurals). The street lantern shown in the first picture above was patented in 1927 by Alfred Weber, an Austrian.
Hopefully this answers some of your questions and I invite others to join in here if they have information to add.
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Tim
Kilokat's Antique Light Bulb Site (http://www.bulbcollector.com)
Mountain Dew Collectibles, Volume I (http://www.dewcollector.com)
[This message has been edited by tim (edited February 15, 2004).]