Historical information

This candle holder has a sharpened point to push or hammer into soft rock and a hook to hang on a ledge or piece of rock. It is intended to be used in a mine and many residents of Warrnambool and district went to the gold mining districts in the 19th century. But it could have been used in the Warrnambool district if a small night light was required in one of the many local quarries or even in the search for coal deposits in the region. It could also have been used in a household.

Significance

This miner’s candle holder has no known local provenance but it is retained as an interesting example of a candle holder used in the past.

Physical description

This is a thin piece of metal tapering to a point at one end and curving around in a loop at the other end to make a handle. Along the straight metal piece is attached a curved metal hook. At the end of the loop is an open-ended circular piece with a serrated top. The circular piece has a rectangular-shaped end piece which enables the hole in the curved piece to be pushed out or pulled in to make the hole smaller or bigger. The metal is much rusted.