Antique carriage lamps are often sought after by collectors. Antique carriage lamps, which were once the primary source of light for travelers, are used today predominantly for decoration in homes. Some antique carriage lamps are also displayed in museums. There are several things that you as a collector must take into consideration when searching for antique carriage lamps. The light source of antique carriage lamps is very important, as well as the size and shape.

The two primary sources of light for antique carriage lamps are oil and candles. The oils used to light the antique carriage lamps ranges from kerosene to whale oil and coal oil. The candle lit antique carriage lamps were not quite as bright as the kerosene lit antique carriage lamps, but the reflectors that were located in the back of the antique carriage lamps served to brighten the light given from either source. Antique carriage lamps gave off almost the same amount of light as the modern headlight.

The kerosene lit antique carriage lamps were a little more difficult to use than the candle lit antique carriage lamps. The wick of the kerosene antique carriage lamps had to be at such a height that it did not cause black soot to cover the glass. If this happened, the antique carriage lamps were of no use because the light couldn’t be seen through the black soot. The size of antique carriage lamps is important depending on what use the lamp is going to serve.

Although there have been some antique carriage lamps that were only 7 ¼” tall, most of them averaged between 14” and 23” tall. The average weight of the antique carriage lamps ranges between 4 and 12 pounds, but there have been some as light as 1.5 pounds. The smaller antique carriage lamps were primarily used as rear lamps and the larger ones were used in the front and any other area where they were needed. The shape of antique carriage lamps did not serve any useful purpose other than aesthetics. Some of the carriage lamps had round glass in the front of the light source with reflectors on the inside of the three other sides. While other antique carriage lamps had square or rectangle beveled glass on three sides with a reflector only in the back of the light source.