Brandy, Balloons, & Lamps: Ami Argand, 1750-1803 [Hardcover]

John J. Wolfe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 1999

John J. Wolfe’s lavishly illustrated Brandy, Balloons, and Larnps: Ami Argand, 1750–1803 is the first biography of the remarkable Genevese scientist who literally turned on the lights at the beginning of the Enlightenment to illuminate the Industrial Revolution. Featuring 53 color plates and 106 black-and-white illustrations, Wolfe provides a colorful record of how Argand advanced Western civilization.

Though modest about his accomplishments, Argand moved with ease in royal and scientific circles. Among his many inventions, he developed such a superior method of distillation that Louis XVI named him superintendent of the distilleries of France. With the Montgolfier brothers, he launched the world’s first hot-air balloon. And dwarfing his other accomplishments, he revolutionized lighting for everyone.

Well aware of the importance of illumination, the best minds among a generation of intellectual giants turned their energies to the improvement of lighting. Scientists conducted experiments in France, England, and America, with the French and English governments offering handsome awards to anyone who could devise a method to improve street lighting. Joseph Priestley, Antoine Laurent Lavoisier, Jean-André Deluc, and James Watt debated conflicting theories of phlogiston. But it was Argand who gave the world an oil lamp that was cheaper, cleaner, and ten times more powerful than previous devices of illumination.

Wolfe tells Argand’s amazing story through contemporary sources, including lively exchanges between Argand and his supporters, foes, and family.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

As a collector of early lighting instruments, John J. Wolfe has served as a consultant on and a contributor to the chapter on lighting in the French Ministry of Culture’s encyclopedia Les Objets Civil Domestiques. He was a lighting consultant for and a contributor to the restoration of the Matthew Boulton eighteenth-century home in Soho, Birmingham, England, and he assisted the Marie of Versoix, Switzerland, in the restoration of the collection of original Argand manufactured products. Wolfe is a founding member of the Historic Lighting Club of Great Britain and the author of numerous articles for their publication as well as for the Rushlight Club of the United States. He frequently lectures on Ami Argand’s historic contribution to lighting in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. He resides in Normandy, France.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: Southern Illinois University Press; 1st edition (July 16, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809322781
• ISBN-13: 978-0809322787
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 8.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,367,261 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The story of Ami Argand who spear-headed modern lighting, August 6, 1999

By 

Heinz Baumann ([e-mail]) (Buffalo, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brandy, Balloons, & Lamps: Ami Argand, 1750-1803 (Hardcover)

An invention of an oil lamp has revolutionized the world. Finally, a lamp has been created that produced a good light without the annoying smoke that has plagued the social life of people over thousands of years. The value of the inventions is immediately recognized and the demand for the new lamp is overwhelming. A commercial opportunity of enormous proportion has emerged. Can a single person protect his invention and satisfy the demand for the new light against the competitive spirit of free market? It is the year 1784, the rumblings of the French Revolution, of the Napoleon wars, and of restructuring of the social systems are not yet heard. It is the time of technical innovations. The steam engine has already advanced manufacturing industry and the dream to conquer the air has just become a reality, the balloon of the Montgolfier brothers graces the sky. John J. Wolfe's book provides an initiate picture of Ami Argand, the Genevese citizen who perfected distilleries for Brandy, invented the two-air draft burner for oil lamps, and assisted the Montgolfiers in flying balloons. Its is a also the story of greed, deceit and unhappiness, and a story of an unfortunate hero and of successful villains. For the first time, an authoritative account is given for the life of Argand; a brilliant scientist who is immortalized by his invention, the Argand lamp, but also a person who sought recognition and wished to persevere in business. The combination of a spell binding story and never published pictures of early lighting promotes this book as a must for students of history, technology and lighting.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Light up the World, August 31, 2006

By 

Donald B. Siano (Westfield, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Brandy, Balloons, & Lamps: Ami Argand, 1750-1803 (Hardcover)

This is a beautiful book, lavishly produced on fine paper, with 46 colored plates and many black and white photos. This is the story of Ami Argand, inventor of the greatly improved oil lamp in 1780. Argand lived an interesting life, and knew some of the main characters in the industrial revolution, such as James Watt, Matthew Boulton, and the Montgolfier brothers. His story had been mostly forgotten, though, and Wolfe has done the world some good in bringing it back to life.

The lamp Argand patented was actually an important invention. It was no small thing to bring a much improved, cheaper source of light to the homes and shops of an industrializing West. The Argand lamp became the standard configuration until about 1850 when the kerosene lamp more or less replaced it. Many of them were real works of art, eagerly sought by collectors today. They were more or less on the edge of what could be mass produced at the time, and Argand experienced many trials and tribulations in bringing it to market. Even the renowned Boulton factories had trouble producing them.

This is a wonderful tale of the Industrial Revolution, and I much enjoyed it. Thank you Mr. Wolfe!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you enjoyed Longitude you will love this book., August 22, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brandy, Balloons, & Lamps: Ami Argand, 1750-1803 (Hardcover)

John Wolfe portrays the poignant story of a brilliant, gentle, and naive 18th century inventor, Ami Argand. Wolfe's exhaustive research rewards the reader with an intimate view into the life and thinking of Argand and other 18th century luminaries. This book engages your sense of histroy, science, intrigue, and lighting. I really enjoyed it.