A candle is an ignitable wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. Candles have been used for over two millennia around the world, and were a significant form of indoor lighting until the invention of other types of light sources. Although electric light has largely made candle use nonessential for illumination, candles are still commonly used for functional, symbolic and aesthetic purposes and in specific cultural and religious settings.
Some early candles were made of beeswax, but these candles were expensive and their use was limited to the elite and the churches. Tallow was a cheaper but less aesthetically pleasing alternative. In the modern era, various materials have been developed for candle making, including paraffin wax. This, combined with efficient production techniques, made candles affordable for the general public. Various devices can be used to hold candles, including candlesticks, candelabras, chandeliers, lanterns, and sconces. A person who makes candles is traditionally known as a chandler.
The combustion of the candle proceeds in a self-sustaining manner. As the wick of a candle is lit, the heat melts and ignites a small amount of solid fuel (the wax), which vaporizes and combines with oxygen in the air to form a flame. The flame then melts the top of the mass of solid fuel, which moves upward through the wick via capillary action to be continually burnt, thereby maintaining a constant flame. The candle shortens as the solid fuel is consumed, so does the wick. Wicks of pre-19th century candles required regular trimming with scissors or "snuffers" to promote steady burning and prevent smoking. In modern candles, the wick is constructed so that it curves over as it burns, and the end of the wick gets trimmed by itself through incineration by fire.European Candle Association FAQ .
Etymology The word comes from Middle English , from Old English and from Anglo-Norman , both from Latin , from .
History
Prior to the invention of candles, ancient people used open fire, torches, splinters of resinous wood, and lamps to provide artificial illumination at night. Primitive oil lamps in which a lit wick rested in a pool of oil or fat were used from the Paleolithic period, and pottery and stone lamps from the Neolithic period have been found. Because candle making requires a reliable supply of animal or vegetable fats, it is certain that candles could not have developed before the early Bronze Age; however, it is unclear when and where candles were first used. Objects that could be candlesticks have been found in Babylonian and middle Minoan cultures, as well in the tomb of Tutankhamun. The "candles" used in these early periods would not have resembled the current forms; more likely they were made of plant materials dipped in animal fat.
Early evidence of candle use may be found in Italy, where a depiction of a candlestick exists in an Etruscan tomb at Orvieto, and the earliest excavated Etruscan candlestick dates from the 7th century BC. Candles may have evolved from taper with wick of oakum and other plant fibre soaked in fat, pitch or oil and burned in lamps or pots. Candles of antiquity were made from various forms of natural fat, tallow, and wax, and Romans made true dipped candles from tallow and beeswax. Beeswax candles were expensive and their use was limited to the wealthy, so oil lamps were the more commonly used lighting devices in Roman times. Ancient Greece used torches and oil lamps, and likely adopted candle use in a later period from Rome. Early record in China suggests that candles were used in the Qin dynasty before 200 BC. These early Chinese candles may have been made from whale fat.
In Christianity, candles gained significance in their decorative, symbolic and ceremonial uses in churches. Wax candles, or candela cerea recorded at the end of the 3rd century, were documented as Easter candles in Spain and Italy in the fourth century, the Christian festival Candlemas was named after it, and Pope Sergius I instituted the procession of lighted candles. Papal bulls decreed that tallow be excluded for use in altar candles, and a high beeswax content is necessary for candles of the high altar.
In medieval Europe, candles were initially used primarily in Christian churches. Their use spread later to the households of the wealthy as a luxury item. In Northern Europe, especially England, rushlights made of greased rushes were commonly used, but tallow candles were used during the Middle Ages, with a mention of tallow candles in English appearing in 1154. Beeswax was widely used in church ceremonies. Compared to animal-based tallow, it burns cleanly without smoky flame, and does not release an unpleasant smell like tallow. Beeswax candles were expensive, and relatively few people could afford to burn them in their homes in medieval Europe.
The candles were produced using a number of methods: dipping the wick in molten fat or wax, rolling the candle by hand around a wick, or pouring fat or wax onto a wick to build up the candle. In the 14th century Sieur de Brez introduced the technique of using a mould, but real improvement for the efficient production of candles with mould was only achieved in the 19th century. Wax and tallow candles were made in monasteries in the medieval period, and in rural households, tallow candles were made at home. By the 13th century, candle making had become a guild craft in England and France, with a French guild documented as early as 1061. The candle makers (chandlers) went from house to house making candles from the kitchen fats saved for that purpose, or made and sold their own candles from small candle shops.
By the 16th century, beeswax candles were appearing as luxury household items among the wealthy. Candles were widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries, and a party in Dresden was said to have been lit by 14,000 candles in 1779.
In the Middle East, during the Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates, beeswax was the dominant material used for candle making. Beeswax was often imported from long distances; for example, candle makers from Egypt used beeswax from Tunis. As in Europe, these candles were expensive and limited to the elite, and most commoners used oil lamps instead. According to legend, the practice of using lamps and candles in mosque started with Tamim al-Dari who lit a lamp he brought from Syria in the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. The Umayyad caliph Al-Walid II was known to have used candles in the court in Damascus, while the Abbasid caliph al-Mutawakkil was said to have spent 1.2 million silver dirhams annually on candles for his royal palaces.
In early modern Syria, candles were in high demand by all socioeconomic classes because they were customarily lit during marriage ceremonies. There were candle makers' guilds in the Safavid capital of Isfahan during the 1500s and 1600s. However, candle makers had a relatively low social position in Safavid Iran, comparable to barbers, bathhouse workers, fortune tellers, bricklayers, and porters.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, spermaceti, a waxy substance produced by the sperm whale, was used to produce a superior candle that burned longer, brighter and gave off no offensive smell. Later in the 18th century, colza oil and rapeseed oil came into use as much cheaper substitutes.
Modern era
A number of improvements were made to the candle in the 19th century. In older candles, the wick of a burning candle was not in direct contact with air, so it charred instead of being burnt. The charred wick inhibited further burning and produced black smoke, so the wick needed to be constantly trimmed or "snuffed". In 1825, French candle maker M. Cambacérès introduced the plaited wick soaked with mineral salts, which when burnt, curl towards the outer edge of the flame and become incinerated by it, thereby trimming itself. These are referred to as "self-trimming" or "self-consuming" wicks. In 1823, Michel Eugène Chevreul and Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac separated out stearin in animal fats, and obtained a patent in 1825 to produce candles that are harder and can burn brighter.
The manufacture of candles became an industrialized mass market in the mid 19th century. In 1834, Joseph Morgan, a pewterer from Manchester, England, patented a machine that revolutionised candle making. It allowed for continuous production of molded candles by using a cylinder with a moveable piston to eject candles as they solidified. This more efficient mechanized production produced about 1,500 candles per hour. This allowed candles to be an affordable commodity for the masses.
In the mid-1850s, James Young succeeded in distilling paraffin wax from coal and oil shales at Bathgate in West Lothian and developed a commercially viable method of production. Paraffin could be used to make inexpensive candles of high quality. It was a bluish-white wax, which burned cleanly and left no unpleasant odor, unlike tallow candles. By the end of the 19th century, candles were made from paraffin wax and stearic acid.
By the late 19th century, Price's Candles, based in London, was the largest candle manufacturer in the world. Founded by William Wilson in 1830, the company pioneered the implementation of the technique of steam distillation, and was thus able to manufacture candles from a wide range of raw materials, including skin fat, bone fat, fish oil and industrial greases.
Despite advances in candle making, the candle industry declined rapidly upon the introduction of superior methods of lighting, including kerosene lamps and the 1879 invention of the incandescent light bulb. With the widespread use of electric light in the 20th century, candles came to be marketed as more of a decorative item.
Use
Before the invention of electric lighting, candles and oil lamps were commonly used for illumination. In areas without electricity, they are still used routinely. In the developed world today, candles are used mainly for their aesthetic value and scent, particularly to set a soft, warm, or romantic ambiance, or for emergency lighting during electrical power failures. They are also still commonly used in religious and ceremonial contexts. Examples include votive candles, Paschal candles and yahrzeit candles. In the days leading to Christmas, some people burn a candle a set amount to represent each day, as marked on the candle. The type of candle used in this way is called the Advent candle, although this term is also used to refer to candles that are used in an Advent wreath.
Symbolic use of candles has extended from the religious to the secular. For example, a candlelight vigil may be held in remembrance for a person, a cause or an event, or as a form of political action or protest. In a social setting, candles are commonly used on birthday cakes.
In the 21st century, there has been an increase in sales of scented candles in recent years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns, with scented candles, diffusers and room sprays becoming popular.
Other uses
With the fairly consistent and measurable burning of a candle, a common use for them was to tell the time. The candle designed for this purpose might have time measurements, usually in hours, marked along the wax. The type of candles used in this way are called candle clocks.
Components
Wax