Historical information

A large lamp used used to light a room by showing light from above. Used in the Orbost district late 19th to early 20th century prior to electricity connection.
Generally, lamps like this had a matching decorations on the shade and vase.
It would have been almost impossible to find an exact match if the shade was broken so the next best thing was to replace it with a plain white one. The majority of the removable slip fonts were made to the same dimensions so it was not uncommon for an original font to be replaced with a different brand if it became unusable.

Significance

This is an example of a domestic lighting device in use before the widespread connection of electricity to houses in Orbost.

Physical description

A large lamp which hangs from a bracket. It has a large white glass cover above the wick burner and below is a white bowl decorated with flowers. The hanging lamp is American and, from the design and pattern of the brass work, it was made by Edward Miller & Co. Both the shade and vase (font holder) are glass.
It is most likely that the shade has been replaced at some stage. (ref. oillampantiques.com)