History of Candle Making
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History of Candle Making
Summary
The evolution of candle making spans from 3000 BC to the present, highlighting developments from ancient Egyptians to Europeans.Keywords
Beeswax, Candles, Candle wicks, Candle StandsWho Invented the Candle?
Candles were independently invented in various regions. The Egyptians and Cretans crafted candles from beeswax as early as 3000 BC. By the fourth century BC, Egyptians used clay candle holders. In China, during the Qin Dynasty, Emperor Qin Shi Huang's tomb contained whale fat candles. Early Chinese and Japanese cultures made tapers using wax from insects and seeds, and India used cinnamon wax for temple candles.
In the first century AD, Native Americans utilized oil from the "candlefish" to light up spaces, while excavations in Pompeii revealed candelabras. The Latin root "candere" means "to flicker," and Tibetans used yak butter for candles. The oldest European candle, dating back to the first century AD, was found near Avignon, France.
By 848 AD, King Alfred employed candle-clocks that burned for four hours, eventually evolving to 24-hour versions. China’s Sung dynasty (960-1279) used a similar method with weight-laden candle-clocks, triggering noises as weights dropped into a bowl. This practice extended into coal mining until the 20th century.
The Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, candles gained popularity during Candlemas and Saint Lucy celebrations. Tallow, derived from cows or sheep, became the standard material in Europe. The Tallow Chandlers Company, founded around 1300 in London, was granted a coat of arms in 1456. Tallow candles even illuminated streets by 1415.
Chandlers also manufactured sauces, vinegar, soap, and cheese, earning the nickname "smeremongere." To avoid the unpleasant smell of tallow candles, churches and royals preferred beeswax. The Wax Chandlers Company, dating from about 1330, obtained a charter in 1484. Candle molds emerged in 15th century Paris, but the process was so foul-smelling that it was banned in several cities. In America, colonists used bayberries for candles, though 15 lbs of berries yielded just 1 lb of wax.
New Types of Oil
Spermaceti, an oil from sperm whales, was used from 1750 for luxurious candles. By 1800, a cheaper alternative emerged: colza oil from Brassica campestris, offering a clear, smokeless flame. French chemists Michel-Eugène Chevreul and Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac patented stearin in 1811, an animal-derived product without glycerine.
Joseph Sampson received the second patent in the United States for a candle-making method in 1790. William Colgate, initially in the tallow business in 1806 New York, shifted to soap-making by 1847. Ethical concerns also linked candle and soap manufacturers like Colgate and James Wilson of Price's Candles to social causes such as Christianity and abolitionism.
In 1815, more candles might have burned than ever before due to celebrations after Napoleon's defeat. In 1834, Joseph Morgan industrialized candle production, developing a machine that produced 1,500 candles per hour.
Paraffin and Palm Oil
Paraffin, a scentless hydrocarbon wax, was initially distilled in 1830 by chemist Laurent from schist and later from coal-tar in 1835 by Dumas. Commercial viability arrived with James Young's 1850 patent for coal-derived paraffin, marking a shift as candles became more decorative.
William Wilson of Price's Candles invested in coconut plantations in Sri Lanka in 1829, hoping to use coconut oil, later experimenting with palm oil. Yet, George Wilson’s 1854 distillation of petroleum oil in Burma changed everything. By 1922, Lever Brothers merged several candle companies to form "Candles Ltd," which later became assets under Shell Oil, BP, and Burmah Oil. Shell divested the candle-making business in 1991.
Today, Rathbornes Candles, established in Dublin in 1488, is the oldest candle manufacturer still operating.
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