Byzantine oil lamp? Yes now you can have your own replica
Hand made in the Holy Land!
Remember it is a special deal for limited time and quantity
Air Mail Post will take about 15 days - If you order 15 or more oil lamps from this page, it will take only 5 working days with EMS Post
PALESTINE, Circa AD 400 to 600
Another Christian version of the oil lamp style in Palestine. The decoration consists of a grapes, palms, and leaves.
This design is crafted as accurate replicas from Palestine and Israel.
The Small lamp size 3 1/2" x 2 1/2", Large size 4 1/2" x
3"
small
$ 6.25 - (Large $6.50 Limited quantity)
Large
Design 2
GOLGOTHA, Circa AD 300 to 500
A Byzantine "candlestick" lamp. Many researchers call menorah, although some call it palm branch, as many were used in Christian as well as Jewish homes of the 5th and 6th centuries AD. This reproduction is based on several originals from Bethany, Nazareth, and Jerusalem.
The Small lamp size 3 3/4" x 3" , Large lamp
size 4 1/2" x 3 1/2"
small $ 6.25 - (Large $6.50 (Limited
quantity)
Large
May the Light of Christ shine well for you.
Oil Lamps in the Ancient World
For thousands of years small oil lamps were used for light in homes, temples, taverns, and tombs. At least as far back as 3,500 BC, oil lamps are known to have been in use, though crude by standards reached in the first few centuries AD. Olive oil may have been used as a light source even further back, in naturally cupped stone containers, and later, in Mesopotamia, in sea-shells.
The lamp at the right, from the Holy Land, shows this feature, and dates to about the 3th century AD.
A lamp of this type features an inscription on the shoulders of the lamp body. Mostly written in debased Greek, the major theme of the sayings were all the same, to the effect of "May the Light of Christ shine well for you". Other variations were written, but most all use this theme of light and Christ together, a powerful symbol of the light in the darkness, and the Light of the word of God. Many of these lamps were produced in the Christian areas of Palestine, and imported to Jerusalem and other areas of Christian Israel. Go to Top
At the same time that these almond shaped lamps were in use in the
Middle East, and in the Mediterranean, these Christian lamps of
the 5th and 6th Centuries often depicted animals and humans, and even
Jesus and the Saints. Others used the popular Christogram, a Greek letter
monogram for Christ. Many other lamps featured animals, with
some of the older Roman trends reappearing, such as running lions and
birds. Fish, an obvious
Christian motif, were also popular, as were pictures of saints. Not all
lamps were religiously decorated.
The same basic body style used on the "candlestick" Byzantine period lamps survived in the Middle East well into the following Islamic period. Returning to the Mosaic tradition of avoiding depictions with living beings. These lamps were found throughout the area from about AD 600 to AD 800, though in some areas the style survived for several more centuries. Examples found in Caesarea, with this basic body design, but coated with a green glaze, were used into the Crusader period, and are dated to about AD 1200.
This brief introduction to lamps is naturally simplistic, but serves only as an overview of a ceramic tradition that lasted for centuries. If you would like to learn more about the ancient world, please investigate the link below.
The common use of pottery containers for oil lamps, however, was not to flourish until perhaps the 8th or 7th centuries BC. At first, pottery lamps were simple wheel-thrown saucers. The wick, often of flax, was immersed in the oil and draped on the saucer's rim. In most areas, olive oil was the favored fuel, but other vegetable oils and even animal fats could be used as well. Before long, potter's discovered forming a small spout on the saucer helped keep the wick in place, and soon after the sides of the saucer were simply folded up while the piece was still moist, to create an even better wick support.
Lamp descriptions courtesy of Bryan, from ancientlamps.com