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| Chandelier Revival |
| Add some to your home for a swinging time. |
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The shimmering cascades of cut glass, which illuminated the entrance halls, drawing rooms, and ballrooms of the great houses of Europe, still evoke a vision of 18th century splendour and opulence.
These days chandeliers are not just for the affluent. From the ornate and sophisticated to the intricate and quirky the chandelier is making a resurgence in all types of homes. They can add a touch of romance to a bedroom setting or bring warmth and charm to a living room.
Chandeliers-A Brief History
The earliest known crystal chandeliers appeared in the 16th century and were dressed with rock crystal (a transparent crystalline form of quartz) of irregular shapes.
By the 17th century, Baroque artisans had become expert at cutting rock crystal for chandeliers. The antique shapes designed at that time are still in use today.
The first chandelier trimmings made of glass rather than rock crystal were manufactured in France late in the 17th Century. The term “crystal” persisted, even after transparent glass became the preferred material.
Complete crystal chandeliers formed entirely from glass were manufactured originally in Murano, an island just north of Venice. The Venetians guarded their secrets of glassmaking with deadly seriousness, sending assassins after any artisans who left the island. Despite these precautions, the manufacture of crystal chandeliers spread to Bohemia, Spain and as far as England and Ireland.
The glass chandelier concept evolved over the years, but it came to the forefront with the development of lead glass in England in the 17th Century. Venetians were already creating fruit, flower and leaf bouquets of ‘cristallo’ by that time.
Meanwhile in France, artisans were creating elaborate bronze chandeliers covered with rock-crystal beads and pressed glass pendants. Rock crystal was expensive, scarce and not easily cut due to its brittle nature. It also had poor qualities of refraction. An English glassmaker, George Ravenscroft, searching for a substitute, developed in 1676 “a new sort of crystalline glass resembling rock crystal.” After much experimentation, he found that by adding lead oxide, glass became soft and highly refractive, making it easier to cut and more transparent than rock crystal.
As the demand for chandeliers as luxury objects grew, designs became more complex and intricate. Around 1750, the Rococo influence brought great sparkle, with elaborate cut-glass pendants and ornaments such as notched spires added to the ensemble.
After 1765, influenced predominantly by the elegant style of Robert Adam, crystal chandeliers became longer, with Grecian-urn designs on the shafts, arms were strung with chains of pendants, and candle sockets and drip pans became very elaborate, sometimes taking the form of bells or flowers.
Although English crystal was highly thought of, artisans on the European continent worked hard to catch up. In the early part of the nineteenth century, companies such as J. & L. Lobmeyer in Vienna and Baccarat in France were making exceptional lead crystal chandeliers.
Buying Chandeliers
New chandeliers may be purchased from:
Lighting shops
Chandelier specialists
For those looking for a more unique and interesting chandelier:
Antique shops
Second-hand shops
Specialty shops (Victoria Spring Designs, see below)
For the cheaper alternatives:
Markets
Garage sales
Car boot sales
Junk yards
Tips
Council clean-ups
To restore or ‘fix-up’ an old piece you have the option of taking it to the professionals or you can take on the challenge yourself. There are numerous bead and crystal shops that supply glass parts or classic crystals. Some market stall-holders often have odd drops and pendants that are usually on sale at a bargain price.
Modern-Day Designer and Restorer
Edward Milech, a designer and restorer of chandeliers, established “Edward’s Chandelier Service” 10 years ago. The business first started out as a weekend chandelier cleaning service and after a few years of building up a solid clientele, both private and public, the business became a full-time occupation.
Dismantling a weighty chandelier, cleaning each piece and then reassembling it is only a small part of his work these days. He also repairs and rewires chandeliers, replacing missing or broken pieces with those he’s accumulated from around the world.
Edward also designs and assembles new chandeliers for those who desire a stylish custom-made room adornment with individually designed features.
Edward’s tip
Use only 60-watt clear bulbs in chandeliers because the bare filament “gives the crystal something to play with, just like the naked flame of a candle”.
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More Info
For more information contact,
Victoria Spring Designs,
110 Oxford Street,
Paddington, Sydney, NSW.
Ph: (02) 9331 7862.
Edward’s Chandelier Service,
Woollahra Antique Gallery,
160 Oxford Street,
Woollahra, Sydney NSW 2025.
Ph: (02) 9387 3318 Mob: 0414 284 082.
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Disclaimer
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