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jlc102482

Help dating this chandelier?

jlc102482
12 years ago

Can anyone give me an educated guess as to the date of this chandelier? The person I bought it from said it was 1920s, but I thought there was something Nouveau-ish about it. I believe it was always electrified. It appears to be made of brass and is meant to take 2 1/4" glass fitter shades.

Thanks!

Comments (10)

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Well....the parts that would really help date it would be the glass shades and they are missing.
    I'd say 20s is a good guess.

  • jlc102482
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks, Linda. What type of shades do you think would be appropriate? I tried one on that came off an old pan chandelier and it looked pretty good, but I'm not sure a pan chandelier and this fixture are contemporaneous.

    Would a 20's fixture have something like this

    {{gwi:1388405}}

    or something more like this?

    http://houseofantiquehardware.com/Art-Deco-Shade

  • Mikk
    12 years ago

    To me, the first one looks more period. Globes would look nice as well.

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Or if you are feeling flush....how about these?

    Here is a link that might be useful: Art glass shade

  • calliope
    12 years ago

    I've seen similar fixtures dating all the way back to 1911, but this one isn't quite complete. There should be a ceiling mount. That would suggest this fixture has hung from a chain to that mount, and you'll find that type of pendant becoming very popular starting in the 20s. This type of fixture is very compatible with a 20s date. It would likely not have had a round globe in that style, but one like you already suggested, or a tulip style. That was a period where fancy glass was in vogue, so your replacements could be whatever you wish and still likely be appropriate.

    Previous to the 20s, most all of those types of electroliers were brass. Starting with the 20s, you will begin to see other metals incorporated.

  • jlc102482
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks for the help, everyone! After taking this apart to clean it this weekend, I discovered it was brass but had been painted with some kind of dark paint. I'll probably just leave it as is, though I really would have preferred the regular brass look.

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Strip the paint! It's really easy to strip paint from smooth metal.....and it will be fabulous in copper.
    Linda C

  • calliope
    12 years ago

    The paint may very well be original to the fixture, though. The lighting fixtures in my folks' craftsman era house are all original and most were painted and hand detailed (although they are still in very good conditon and intact). That doesn't mean you shouldn't remove the finish. Linda can that be done safely with brass? I dunno, never tried it. I supposed another option if you want to clean it up and eventually use it is to repaint and detail it. I am not much into messing with old things, but if it were my fixture and I intended hanging it, I might go that far.

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Something like BIX works magic on brass....removes the paint easily....washes off with water....and with brass no worry about raising the grain or rusting....and when you wash the paint off, the tarnish goes too.
    I've stripped a few dressers where the lovely brasses were pain ted and a few windows and lift handles and window locks etc etc....

  • jlc102482
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks for the suggestion! I'll have to get myself some BIX. I know the black paint is probably original but I think this piece will look better without it. It's got a lot of beautiful detailing that you can't really see with all the dark paint.