Antique Lighting Fixtures

Antique lighting fixtures can be both an excellent investment and a great way of enhancing your home. Although the earliest forms of antique lights are Roman oil lamps these are not viable for lighting your home. The term antique lighting is normally understood to mean light fixtures dating from 16th century onwards.


Lighting has changed over that period of time from the first fixtures which were wooden chandeliers to 19th century gas lamps and then finally to electric lights made from wrought iron, bronze, brass, and crystal.

It is also important when looking for antique lights to check that the lights are not only in a style you like (which goes without saying), but also that they are complete, given that they are antiques any missing parts will be very difficult to find so you need to be sure when you buy them that all the parts are there and the light is usable. 

A further consideration is which room you will be putting them in. A drop light or a chandelier may not for example be suitable for your dining room. You should also not use low-voltage electric bulbs with chandeliers.

Sconces are useful for providing fill-in lighting, but be sure to take into consideration the height of the ceiling.

A drop bowl, on the other hand, will provide an all round indirect light source that illuminates the whole space to great effect.

For lighting kitchen islands, open counters or sinks antique pendants are ideal but you may wish to supplement them by lighting fixtures located directly over cabinets.

Your budget will influence your choice of course, as antiques are not cheap, but on the upside they do tend to increase in value over time, so that they represent an investment as well as being good to look at.

You must also ensure that any antiques you buy come with a warranty from a recognized expert.  It is not unknown for unscrupulous dealers to sell antique lights that contain only parts of antiques, while a large part of the fixture is reproduction. Reproductions can be fine if you know that they are reproductions but they obviously do not have the same investment value as a genuine antique.