Christmas Candles

Christmas Candles

Christmas Candles for the Christmas Tree

The earliest lights on Christmas trees were candles or ‘tapers’. Beeswax was expensive so the candles were made of tallow instead. Tallow comes from animal fat, usually sheep that has been melted down and allowed to harden. When tallow burns it splutters, making quite a lot of smoke and it has a distinctly sheepish smell.

The legend is that Martin Luther, the founder of the Protestant Church in Germany in the sixteenth century was the first person to put candles on a Christmas tree. One winter evening he was walking home, looked up and saw the stars twinkling through the branches of the fir trees. This gave him the insight and when he arrived home he set up a tree and decorated it with candles.

The earliest candles were tied or wired around the branches, as you can imagine, this was not particularly safe and became a real danger. The tradition was to cut the tree on Christmas Eve so they would have been fresher and less likely to ignite and people knew of the dangers and would keep a bucket of water on hand.

In December 1867 Charles Kirchhof, an American, first patented the counterweighted candleholder. The weights were often clay and painted in festive colours; sometimes they were moulded into figures or shapes. Unfortunately, the weight would sometimes cause the candle to slide off the branch.

In 1879 another American inventor created a candle-holder with a spring clip that could be attached to a tree. This invention became a great success and may still be seen today. These candle holders were safer than the counterweighted type because they stayed in place on the branches, although they did not keep the candle absolutely straight. Their design was enhanced by an adjustable ball-and- socket joint that could be rotated to keep the candle straight and upright. Most early holders featured metal discs to catch wax and keep it from dripping onto other ornaments or the floor.

One of the last patents was granted in 1920. This version features a fluted design and brilliant finish. The holder grips the base of the candle to keep it upright and stable. A ball and socket mechanism makes it easy to adjust the candle. Wax catcher keeps drips off the carpet. It has an adjustable spring clamp to grasp the branch and is easy to reposition.

Have you ever wondered why Victorian candles are spiral?
When the wax on a candle near the flame melts, it drips down the side of the candle. On a smooth candle, if it is leaning slightly it may run down on to the floor. With a spiral candle, even if it is tilting a little, the wax will run down the grooves without dripping…