Davy Miner's Safety Lamp

Description:

This Davy-style miner’s safety lamp was manufactured by the American Safety Lamp and Mine Supply Company of Scranton, Pennsylvania around the late 19th and early 20th century. The lamp is called a safety lamp because it can be used safely in the presence of flammable gas. In 1815, Sir Humphry Davy discovered that surrounding the flame with a fine wire gauze would cool the flame to such an extent that it could not ignite the flammable gas surrounding the lamp. Museum records indicate that this Davy-style safety lamp used sperm-oil as its source of fuel.

See more items in: Work and Industry: Mining, Mining Lamps, Work, Industry & Manufacturing, Grant Wheat Collection

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Related Publication: Pohs, Henry A.. Early Underground Lamps

Credit Line: Mary R. Wheat

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: AG.MHI-MN-8139Accession Number: 239148Catalog Number: MHI-MN-8139

Object Name: lamp, safety, mining

Measurements: overall: 9 13/16 in; 24.892 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a6-cbd8-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_872672

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