Have you ever felt the soft, warm light that came from the single lamp in the room with your grandparents telling you stories about their youth? Living in an advanced world, suddenly it seemed how people of the past could be so happy with their simple fire in fireplace, or a concentrated ray of a candle or an oil lamp. Of these precious memories, perhaps, there would be a small memorabilia that hanged above the lamp – a milk glass smoke bell that has perhaps come from the earlier decades.
The smoke bell is actually an antique milk glass with scalloped edges and that creamy white color – the kind of glass that makes people of certain generations’ hearts melt with the tender recollection of the moments. Their smoke bells were not merely ornaments; they were functional objects meant for trapping smokes and sputs of oil lamps and candles which dirty the ceiling. Prior to the existence of the light bulbs, they were an important necessity of home care and beautification.
Smoke bell’s history is associated with the 18th and 19th centuries when oil lamps were the main sources of lighting. Made out of milk glass, a kind of opalescent glass which has white opaque milk look, these bells were elegant objects that also served a purpose. It cast a fainting glaze of light on the walls and floor; something that any room would benefit from for aesthetic purposes. Milk glass was desirable because of the appearance and its compatibility when used to laminate lamps and chandeliers of the period.
While they were being widely used, the smoke bells were not only necessities; they were also lit items would show a touch of class in a home. This was because anything that belonged to a family could easily be associated with sophistication and cleanliness. These items encouraged social transitions that characterized the society as it shifted towards industrialization by embodying new home life and interior designing. Switching from using flames to safer and more effective sources of lighting was one transformative change that people experienced in the history of the use lighting.