Thanks to Mick Emm for allowing me to share this wonderful Aladdin Donut. They stopped making this Donut in 1917 and despite the globe being incorrect it is still a stunning lamp. I believe the correct globe has been fitted since these photos were taken. It is on display along with some of Micks' other lamps at Bolton Abbey Railway Museum. The, for safety reasons, required electric hanging lamps blend it well with the pressure lamps. I suspect I'll never own a lamp such as this but I'd dearly like to.
I think it's an Aladdin Minerva. Aladdin may have been producing lamps up til 1917, but after 1913 they was fully owned by AB Lux after a lost patent feud. The production continued under the name Aladdin.
Thanks Christer, that's interesting information. Whom were Aladdin in Sweden? Did they have any connection to Americas' Aladdin Industries or were they simply a Swedish company that took on the name Aladdin?
They were Aktiebolaget Aladdin, Stockholm. Nothing to do with The Mantle Lamp Co. of America. At the time Aladdin was the company name for AB Aladdin but Aladdin was a brand name for the US company. ::Neil::
They had no connection with other companies using the name Aladdin. I think I read at the Guild many years ago that the Swedish company Aladdin was formed before the others. Not sure about that, but I do know that they started production in 1905, and after some years became the largest competitor to Lux. But since they copied Lux' lamps and spares pretty openly, they lost that feud regarding patent infringement, and in the panic after the courts judgement, Lux just simply bought the entire Aladdin stock.
1905 is before Aladdin US who started in 1909 if my memory is correct. Mind you I am not as good on wicky crap dates but in any case different continents and the name was not registered by both companies in both places. Incidentally I have one of these huge beasts hanging in my stairwell. They were sold in the UK so there may yet be more to be found here. ::Neil::
Thanks all, a really interesting read that helps one understand whom was tied in with whom - or not. It can be awfully confusing trying to figure out what company made what.
Hi ! I find it surprising the lamps are so old !! MINERVA and JANUS ?? Maybe someone from Sweden knows what or why these names were given to the lamps , do they mean something in your past history ?? mick
Hi Tonebone . Yes it looks better with a pointed teardrop shaped glass but I kind of got use to seeing the wrong glass on the lamp ! The stuffed Squirrel glass dome upside down was a very neat fit around rim but just too long in the body !! mick
I suppose it does look a bit long but I could live with it. I'm not sure you would know it was wrong if you had never previously seen the lamp with the proper globe.
Hi Matt and mick few more pictures here of your lamp mick we took in the garden that time cheers pete
What you said Mick and also some nice close ups of the W.A.M brass plate and ATM on the fuel gauge that Pete took. I'd be interested to know what the initials stand for. These types of lamps look like a lot of engineering would have gone into them to bring them to life.
I think they just are taken as suitable names. Ancient Greek and Roman figures and gods has often been used to name all kind of stuff all over Europe. Tug boats, tools, lamps... you name it. One little observation I can make, is that the lamps with their own tank use Roman gods for their names while the hollow wire lamps seems more named after Greek mythology. Except for those who just use a telegram code. W.A.M doesn't make sense. Can it be the British retailer?
Yes, ATM. is for atmospheres. That was the common unit here those days. It says so on all Swedish lamp tank gauges I have from that era.
Ah, you were asking about the initials (as opposed to the abbreviation) but yes, ATM is 'Atmospheres' 1 Atmosphere is the same as 1 Bar (1000 millibars) or about 14.7 pounds per square inch (on a good day - literally). So working pressure for this lamp is 22P.S.I. / psi. Lamps and lanterns generally work on 2Atm. or about 29-30psi...
Ah, I missed that the meaning of Atm. was asked about. Not trying to be impertinent, but I actually thought everyone knew that. Especially when written on a pressure gauge. Like David, I thought it only was the W.A.M. meaning you asked about. That is still a mystery. Not any possible British retailer or importer anyone can think of? Regarding the pressure; These old, large lamps with this burner type were generally working at a lower pressure. 1.2-1.5 Atm. was common. But they recommended to increase to almost 2Atm. for the hollow wire lamps if the difference in height became excessive between tank and lamp.
Initially, upon reading the above, I wondered how you could ascertain that. I then went and checked the photo and noticed it had a red 1 1/2 mark above the gauge lines. So, the red 1 1/2 indicates what pressure the lamp should be run at and the black indicator lines is what pressure you are actually at?
Thanks. Not previously having much to do with pressure vessels of any description, no, I didn't know what ATM meant. I have a compressor with two gauges on it and neither has ATM written on it. I have a tyre pressure gauge that looks similar to the ones on the compressor and it doesn't have ATM written on it.
Hi ! " MINERVA " is down as a Roman Goddess of Wisdom. There's the whole Swedish mythology out there surely a " Norse Goddess " the light bringer !! would have existed somewhere !..
Not really any gods associated with light up here. Balder to some extent. Or Skirner, maybe, since the name means something like "the shiny". And Tor (Thor) throws fire and flashes, so a vague association to light there too... In reality I think it's quite pragmatic. I assume they thought name from ancient Greece and Rome were better since most lamps were supposed to go to other countries. Strange name with letters containing dots and rings above them wasn't perhaps the best then, but everyone knows the ancient mediterranean gods and goddesses. Minerva is a bit off, but the other two lamps with Roman association are connected to light in one way or another. The sibling to your Minerva, Janus, was the god who controlled the light from heaven and the little lamp called Vesta also has a well chosen name. Vesta was the godess of the fire and hearth in every household, which is suitable for a little lamp meant for domestic use.
Intresting these names christer I know Primus ovens the HESTIA type are named after the ancient greek goddess of the hearth nothing to do with lamps tho cheers pete
