Artistic Theme - Candles

Artistic Theme - Candles

HUM/100

Francesca Coley (Mallory)

November 15, 2007

Introduction

Candles, glorious candles. Candles have been used to light man’s life for more than 5,000 years. It has been written that Egyptians were the first to develop candles. There’s really not a great deal really known about the origin of candles.

Early Candles

The Egyptians were using wicked candles in 3,000 B.C. (http://www.candles.org/about_history.html) . It was believed that Romans actually developed the first wicked candles before that time. The Romans used to take a thick paper like material called papyrus and continuosly dip it in either melted tallow or beeswax. They would light these and use them as light in their homes. If they had to travel at night, these early forms of candles would aid travelers. The Romans also used these early forms of candles in religious cermonies. Candles played a major role in early religion. The candles were used for festivals by the Jewish. There are so many Biblical references made regarding the use of candles.

Candles in the Middle Ages

In the early years, candles were first made from animal fat or tallow, but as the middle ages approached, there were some improvements on what candles were made from. Beeswax candles were first introduced over in Europe. Beeswax seemed to be a better material because it burned cleaner and didn’t produce that smoky flame like candles made from animal fat. Beeswax also had a very pleasing smell. The one drawback was that these candles were expensive, so during the middle ages, the only people that could actually afford them were the wealthy. The most common candles in European homes were the candles made from tallow.

Colonial Times

During Colonial times, women came up with the very keen idea of boiling berries from bayberry bushes. The berries produced a very sweet smelling candle, but extracting the wax from the bayberries was a very hard job and so this idea didn’t last very long. In the 18th century, there was a huge growth in the whaling industry, and so people starting taking the sperm whale oil and crystalizing it to use for wax. This type of wax burned clean just like the beeswax and also gave off a much brighter light. Another great thing about these candles were the fact that they were much harder so they were able to withstand the heat in the summer.

Advances into the 19th Century

There were so many major developments in the 19th century that forever changed the way candles were made. A French chemist Michel Eugene Chevreul discovered how to extract stearic acid from animal fatty acids which lead to the development of stearin wax. (http://www.candles.org/about_history.html) . These candles were hard, durable and burned clean. In 1834, there was an inventor that created a machine that would continuosly produce molded candles. This new invention made candles more affordable because more could be produced. Parraffin wax was introduced around the 1850’s. We still use Paraffin wax today for beauty purposes. Candle makers had a huge blow in 1879 when the introduction of the light bulb happened because the demand for candles started to decline significantly.

Changes in the 20th Century

During the first part of the 20th century, candles started to regain much of their popularity again. In the 1980’s candles became so much more than just decorative items. Candles started to become available in many different sizes, shapes, colors, and scents. Scented candles took off and running and became a hot item all over the world.

Candles Today

Candles today are used for so many different things. Candles are used for all types of celebrations such as weddings, birthdays, ceremonies, and religious events. Candles are items used for setting the mood for romance because of the amber glow of ight that they give off as well as the soothing scents. Candles are used to make homes smell lovely and inviting. Candles are in our homes in a case there is an emergency and the lights go out. We find ourselves having to go back to the old ways to see in our homes if we lose electricity. The great thing about candles is that they are safe to burn if they are used properly.