Tyler Brooks
The ancient Romans are credited with developing the wicked candle by dipping rolled papyrus in melted tallow (animal fat) or beeswax. The resulting candles were used for lighting homes, aiding travellers at night, and in religious ceremonies. The first dipped candles, made from tallow, were widely used for centuries due to their cheap cost and easy availability. In the 1500s, beeswax was introduced as an alternative to tallow, but its higher cost made it exclusive to the upper classes and the Church.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of Invention | Before 500 BCE |
| Inventor | Romans |
| Method of Production | Rolled papyrus repeatedly dipped in melted tallow or beeswax |
| Raw Material | Tallow or beeswax |
| Use | Lighting homes, aiding travellers at night, religious ceremonies |
| Alternative Raw Materials | Spermaceti, paraffin, bayberry wax |
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![Roman Candles [Sketches of Manners and Customs at Rome. by P. H. Fitzgerald.]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61Bs1WIZixL._AC_UY218_.jpg)
What You'll Learn
Romans made dipped candles from animal fat
The ancient Romans are generally credited with developing the wicked candle by dipping rolled papyrus repeatedly in melted animal fat, called tallow, or beeswax. Tallow is rendered animal fat, usually from beef or mutton. Since tallow is cheap and easily available, tallow candles were the most widely used type of candle for centuries.
The process of making dipped candles involves dipping or drawing a wick in molten fat or wax repeatedly until it reaches the desired size. Other methods of candle-making include shaping the candle by hand, by rolling soft wax around a wick, or pouring fat or wax onto a wick to build up the candle.
The use of candles in ancient Rome served various purposes. They were used to light homes, aid travellers at night, and in religious ceremonies. In Christian churches, candles took on symbolic and ceremonial significance. They were also commonly given as gifts during Saturnalia.
Beeswax was also used by the Romans to make dipped candles. However, beeswax candles were more expensive and less accessible, so their use was often limited to the wealthy. Beeswax was a byproduct of honey collection, and it was purified by boiling it in seawater several times.
The Romans were not the only civilisation to develop candle-making techniques. Ancient China, Japan, India, and Egypt also had their own methods of making candles, using various materials such as whale fat, plant waxes, and insect waxes.
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Tallow candles were cheap and widely used
The Romans are generally credited with developing wicked candles by dipping rolled papyrus in melted tallow (rendered animal fat) or beeswax. Tallow was cheap and easily available, so tallow candles were the most widely used type of candle for centuries. Tallow candles were inexpensive and accessible to the masses, even those who were too poor to afford homemade candles. These candles were often called "farthing dips" or "penny dips" due to their low cost.
Tallow was widely used in candle-making before the introduction of more convenient wax varieties. For a long time, tallow remained a cheaper alternative to other waxes. Tallow was also used in various industrial applications, such as a lubricant for certain types of light engineering work and in the soap industry. Its versatility and low cost made it a popular choice for candle-making.
In Europe, during the Middle Ages, tallow was the standard material used in candles. People made candles from fats saved in their kitchens or purchased them from chandlers, who oversaw the manufacture of candles and other products like sauces and soap. The widespread use of tallow candles is also evident in their cultural significance, such as their use in festivities like Candlemas and Saint Lucy celebrations.
However, tallow candles had an unpleasant smell due to the glycerine they contain. The odour of the manufacturing process was so repulsive that it was banned in several European cities. As a result, in the 1500s, beeswax was introduced as an alternative to tallow. Beeswax candles burned brighter and longer, with less smoke and a more pleasant scent. Nevertheless, beeswax was more challenging to obtain, making it exclusive to the upper classes and the Church in Europe.
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Beeswax candles were introduced in the 1500s
The ancient Romans are generally credited with developing wicked candles by dipping rolled papyrus repeatedly in melted tallow or beeswax. The resulting candles were used for lighting their homes, aiding travellers at night, and in religious ceremonies. The first dipped candles were made from rendered animal fat called tallow, which was cheap and easily available, making tallow candles the most widely used type of candle for centuries.
In the 1500s, beeswax was introduced as an alternative to tallow. Beeswax candles burned brighter and longer with less smoke, and they also smelled better than tallow candles. However, beeswax was more difficult to obtain, which made beeswax candles expensive. Their use was limited to the wealthy and the Church in Europe. In the Middle East, beeswax was the dominant material used for candle-making and was often imported from long distances. For example, candle makers from Egypt used beeswax from Tunis.
The use of beeswax for candles was not new, as ancient Greeks offered moon-shaped honey cakes to the moon goddess Artemis, which were lit by small torches or candles. Historians have also found evidence that many other early civilisations developed wicked candles using waxes made from available plants and insects. In China, textual evidence suggests that candles may have been made from whale fat in the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE). Chinese candles may also be made from beeswax.
The introduction of beeswax candles in the 1500s was a significant development in the history of candle-making, as it offered a cleaner-burning and more pleasant-smelling alternative to tallow candles. However, due to the high cost of beeswax, it was primarily accessible to the upper classes and religious institutions.
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Spermaceti was used for candle-making in the 18th century
The ancient Romans are generally credited with developing the wicked candle by dipping rolled papyrus repeatedly in melted tallow (animal fat) or beeswax. Oil lamps were the most widely used source of illumination in Roman Italy, but candles were common and were often given as gifts.
In the 1500s, beeswax was introduced as an alternative to tallow. Beeswax candles burned brighter and longer with less smoke, and they did not smell as bad as tallow candles. However, they were more difficult to obtain, so beeswax candles were used almost exclusively by the upper classes and the Church in Europe during this time.
The growth of the whaling industry in the 18th century led to the widespread use of spermaceti, an oil found in the head cavity of the sperm whale, for candle-making. Spermaceti was crystallized to make wax, which was the first candle substance to be available in large quantities. Spermaceti wax did not produce a foul odour when burned, and it produced a significantly brighter light than tallow or beeswax. It was also harder, so it would not soften or bend in hot weather. The first "standard candles" were made from spermaceti wax.
By 1800, cheaper alternatives to spermaceti were discovered, such as colza oil and rapeseed oil, which produced clear, smokeless flames. In the 1820s, French chemist Michel Eugene Chevreul discovered how to extract stearic acid from animal fatty acids, leading to the development of stearin wax, which burned cleanly and was hard and durable.
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Paraffin wax was used since the 19th century
The ancient Romans are generally credited with developing wicked candles by dipping rolled papyrus repeatedly in melted tallow or beeswax. The resulting candles were used for lighting homes, aiding travellers at night, and in religious ceremonies. However, the use of wicked candles may have developed earlier in Italy during the Etruscan period, as a picture of a candlestick exists in an Etruscan tomb at Orvieto.
Over time, candles were primarily made from tallow and beeswax in Europe from the Roman period until the modern era. In the 18th and 19th centuries, spermaceti, derived from sperm whales, was used as a candle-making material. Spermaceti did not elicit a repugnant odour when burned and produced a significantly brighter light compared to tallow and beeswax candles.
In the 19th century, the manufacture of candles became an industrialised mass market. This was due to several major developments in candlemaking technology. Firstly, in 1825, French chemists Michel Eugène Chevreul and Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac patented stearin, which was derived from animal fats but had no glycerine content. Stearin was hard and durable, with a convenient melting range, and burned cleanly.
Secondly, in 1830, German chemist Carl Reichenbach created paraffin wax, another major advancement in candlemaking technology. Paraffin wax burned more cleanly and reliably than tallow candles and was cheaper to produce. It was a bluish-white wax derived from petroleum, coal, or oil shale, and it left no unpleasant odour, unlike tallow candles. By the end of the 19th century, most candles being manufactured consisted of paraffin and stearic acid.
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Frequently asked questions
The Romans are generally credited with developing wicked candles before 3,000 BC by dipping rolled papyrus in melted tallow or beeswax.
The first candles were made of wicks stuck into containers filled with a flammable material. The Romans made dipped candles from tallow and beeswax.
Tallow is rendered animal fat. It was cheap and easily available, so tallow candles were widely used for centuries.
The Romans used candles to light their homes, to aid travellers at night, and in religious ceremonies. Oil lamps were more common, but candles were regularly given as gifts during Saturnalia.
