CLIPPER SHIP WATERWITCH BRASS WHALE OIL CABIN LAMP,1850/1861

Description

CLIPPER SHIP WATERWITCH BRASS WHALE OIL CABIN LAMP,1850/1861
This very rare & high quality brass cabin lamp is from the American Clipper Ship Waterwitch* & dates to 1850/61.
This type of lamp has a swivel on top (to mount on a wall so it swivels when in rough seas) & has a large base with a handle for carrying around or setting on a table.
It burns lamp oil (
kerosene
) or whale oil & has a cotton wick inside the oil storage section.
It is 6 ¼” high with a 4 1/8” concave base, a 3 3/8” arm with a curved upward end to form a grip on one side & a 3 3/8” upward curving arm with a hole on the end to attach it to a table or shelf on the other side.
The 2 3/8” wide x 1 ¾” high oil storage unit is attached to a swivel on both sides & has a 7/8” cap on a hinge on top.
It is in very good & still functional condition with a dark brass patina & has some
corrosion
from use on the inside of the top cap.                                                                                      It has an old cotton unused wick still installed.
The bottom nut that holds the lamp to the base is a newer replacement.
This lamp is one of many salvaged artifacts from the ship in April 1861 by Captain James Booth & his crew from the wreck at Hatteras, North Carolina & comes from the Booth/Waterwitch Collection.
It comes with a certificate of authenticity.                                                                             Clippership artifacts are quite rare &
desirable
antiques & are very seldom seen at antique shops, malls or shows anymore!
*The Waterwitch was launched in December 1850 & lost on Chicmanconic, Cape Hatteras, North Carolina on April 8, 1861.