FRENCH ELECTRIC ARC LAMP, INVENTED BY VICTOR SERRIN, MADE BY BREGUET
CIRCA 1860
Auction: 30 September 2015 at 11:00 BST
£1,125
Description
with a silvered arc reflector, on a tapered rectangular base disguising the movement and signed V. SERRIN, INV./ PARIS/ CUND/ BREGUET FT
Dimensions
71cm high
Footnote
Note: Victor Serrin invented the first self-starting and self-regulating arc lamp in 1857, which was built and manufactured by Breguet, a French instrument maker. Serrin's lamp was a big step in electrical lighting, which avoided the troublesome task of manually starting pre-existing carbon run lights. His design was so popular that it was adopted by French light houses, and he predated Thomas Edison's incandescent lamp by 22 years.