Lamp
This article is about the lighting device. For other uses, see Lamp (disambiguation). A lamp is any of various portable or fixed devices designed to produce artificial light, often through combustion of fuel such as oil or gas, or more commonly in modern times via electricity, and sometimes secondarily for heat.[1] Lamps have evolved from simple prehistoric stone or shell depressions filled with animal fat and fibrous wicks, dating back to around 40,000 BCE during the Upper Paleolithic period, to sophisticated electric fixtures integral to daily life, architecture, and industry.[2][3][4] The earliest lamps emerged as humanity sought to extend visibility beyond daylight and firelight, with evidence of hollowed-stone or shell vessels used in Eurasia and Africa by around 40,000 BCE, fueled by animal fats and fibrous wicks for illumination in caves and shelters.[2] By the 5th–6th centuries BCE, ancient civilizations like the Greeks advanced designs to wheel-made ceramic oil lamps with rounded bodies and nozzles, typically burning olive oil or other plant-based fuels, which spread across the Mediterranean and persisted in forms like Roman imperial variants through the early centuries CE.[5][6] These early open-flame lamps, often featuring a single wick hole, provided essential light for households, religious rituals, and work, though they produced soot and required constant tending.[7] The transition to gas and electric lighting marked a revolutionary shift in the 18th and 19th centuries, enabling safer, brighter, and more controllable illumination independent of natural cycles.[8] Innovations like the addition of a glass chimney to oil lamps in 1784 improved flame stability and reduced drafts, while the first gas lamps appeared in 1792, using coal gas for street and indoor lighting in Europe.[9] The invention of the practical incandescent light bulb by Thomas Edison in 1879, building on earlier arc lamps from the 1800s, transformed lamps into electric devices that brought networks of wiring into homes and factories, extending productive hours and enhancing safety in mines and urban areas.[8][10] By the early 20th century, electric lamps supplanted oil and gas models in developed regions, with further advancements like fluorescent tubes in the 1930s and LEDs in the late 20th century improving efficiency and longevity.[8] Lamps are broadly classified by their light-producing mechanisms and form factors, serving ambient, task, or accent purposes in residential, commercial, and industrial settings.[11] Traditional non-electric types include oil lamps (e.g., ancient ceramic or modern kerosene variants) and gas lamps, which burn combustible fuels via wicks or mantles for portable or outdoor use.[2][12] Electric lamps encompass several bulb technologies: incandescent bulbs, which heat a filament to glow and remain common for their warm light despite lower efficiency; fluorescent lamps, using gas discharge to excite phosphors for cooler, energy-saving illumination in offices and garages; high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps, like metal halide or sodium vapor, for high-lumen applications such as streetlights and stadiums; and light-emitting diodes (LEDs), solid-state sources that are highly efficient, converting electricity to light with wall-plug efficiencies up to about 50% and using 75-90% less energy than incandescents for equivalent illumination, dominating modern usage for their durability and low heat output.[11][13] In terms of fixtures, lamps are categorized as portable (e.g., table, desk, floor, or bedside models for targeted or general room lighting) or fixed (e.g., ceiling-mounted or recessed for architectural integration), with designs ranging from utilitarian task lamps for reading to decorative styles like candlestick or tripod forms that enhance aesthetics.[14] The Illuminating Engineering Society defines a lamp technically as a manufactured source of optical radiation, often housed in a luminaire (the complete fixture including reflector and ballast), emphasizing its role in producing visible light while adhering to standards for safety, energy use, and performance.[15] Today, lamps not only illuminate but also integrate smart features like dimming and connectivity, reflecting ongoing innovations in sustainability and design.[13]Lighting device
History
The earliest evidence of lamps dates back to the Upper Paleolithic period (c. 40,000–17,000 BCE), when prehistoric humans used simple stone lamps made from hollow rocks, shells, or ostrich eggs filled with moss or lichen soaked in animal fat as a wick and fuel source, providing controlled light for caves and early shelters.[16] These rudimentary devices marked the transition from open fires to portable illumination, enabling extended activities like hunting and art creation in low-light environments.[17] In ancient civilizations, lamp technology advanced significantly around 3000 BCE in Mesopotamia and Egypt, where terracotta or stone oil lamps fueled by sesame oil in Mesopotamia and castor or olive oil in Egypt were widely used for household, religious, and funerary purposes, often featuring spouts for wicks made from flax or papyrus.[18] By 100 BCE to 400 CE, the Romans refined these into saucer-shaped lamps with nozzles for efficient wick placement, mass-produced in factories and exported across the empire, symbolizing status and facilitating urban night life. In medieval Europe (c. 5th–15th centuries), lighting relied on tallow or beeswax candles, rushlights, and oil lamps fueled by animal fats or vegetable oils such as olive oil, providing illumination in homes and castles despite producing smoke and requiring frequent maintenance. Whale oil later became a preferred fuel for lamps in the 18th century due to its brighter, cleaner burn, though it was costly and limited by supply.[19][20] The 19th century brought transformative transitions from oil to gas and electricity. The Argand lamp, invented by Swiss chemist Aimé Argand in the 1780s, introduced a circular wick and glass chimney for brighter, more efficient oil combustion, revolutionizing indoor lighting before widespread gas adoption.[21] Gas lamps emerged in the early 1800s, with the first street installations in London in 1807 using coal gas, extending usable hours for commerce and public safety.[22] Humphry Davy demonstrated the first electric arc lamp in 1802 by passing current through carbon electrodes, producing intense light but impractical for everyday use due to noise and maintenance.[23] The electric era accelerated with Thomas Edison's patent for the practical incandescent bulb in 1879, featuring a carbon filament in a vacuum that glowed for over 1,200 hours, enabling affordable home electrification and urban expansion.[19] Fluorescent lamps were invented in the early 1900s by Peter Cooper Hewitt with mercury vapor arcs, but practical tubular versions were commercialized by General Electric in the 1930s, offering energy savings up to 75% over incandescents for industrial and office settings.[22] Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) originated in the 1960s with Nick Holonyak's first visible-spectrum LED, but practical white LEDs emerged in the 1990s through indium gallium nitride developments by Shuji Nakamura, enabling compact, long-lasting illumination.[24] Post-1900, widespread electrification transformed societies, with electric lamps replacing gas and oil in homes by the mid-20th century, boosting productivity and leisure.[21] In the 21st century, efficiency standards have driven the phase-out of inefficient incandescents; for instance, the U.S. banned general-service incandescent bulbs over 45 watts starting in 2023 under the Energy Independence and Security Act, promoting LEDs for their 80-90% energy savings and longevity.[24] Outside Europe, ancient Asian civilizations developed their own lamp traditions; for example, in India, diya clay lamps fueled by ghee or sesame oil have been used since the Vedic period (c. 1500 BCE) for rituals and daily lighting, while in China, bronze and ceramic oil lamps date to the Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–256 BCE).)| Date | Invention | Inventor/Key Figure | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| c. 40,000–17,000 BCE | Stone oil lamps | Prehistoric humans | First portable light source beyond fire, aiding early human activities in caves.[16] |
| ~3000 BCE | Olive oil lamps | Mesopotamians/Egyptians | Standardized household and ritual lighting, mass-produced for daily use.[18] |
| 100 BCE–400 CE | Saucer lamps | Romans | Efficient design for empire-wide distribution, enhanced urban illumination. |
| 1780s | Argand lamp | Aimé Argand | Brighter oil light with chimney, precursor to modern burners.[21] |
| Early 1800s | Gas lamps | William Murdoch (pioneer) | Extended public lighting, reduced reliance on oil.[22] |
| 1802 | Electric arc lamp | Humphry Davy | Proof of electric light principle, inspired future developments.[23] |
| 1879 | Incandescent bulb | Thomas Edison | Practical electric home lighting, accelerated electrification.[19] |
| 1930s | Commercial fluorescent lamp | General Electric team | Energy-efficient alternative for large spaces, widespread industrial adoption.[22] |
| 1962 | First visible LED | Nick Holonyak | Foundation for solid-state lighting, compact and durable.[24] |
| 1990s | White LEDs | Shuji Nakamura et al. | Versatile, low-energy light for consumer products, global shift to LEDs.[24] |
| 2023 | U.S. incandescent phase-out | U.S. Department of Energy | Promoted efficient technologies, reducing energy consumption nationwide.[24] |