P&A Mfg. Co. "Eagle" Burner Hand-Painted Violet Glass Oil Lamps, Pair

A matched pair of clear pressed-glass kerosene lamps, each built around a squat, oblate font hand-painted in massed violets — loose, confident brushwork in blues, purples, and lavenders over dark green foliage, with a few scattered blossoms continuing down the ribbed, flaring pedestal base. The painting style is consistent with amateur decorative work of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when undecorated pressed-glass lamp fonts were sold specifically as blanks for home embellishment. The fluted base form is a period standard; the globe fonts sit above on a short neck, giving each lamp its characteristic squat silhouette.

The brass burner hardware is the real identifier here. The collar rings are embossed EAGLE, and the octagonal thumbwheels read P&A MFG. CO. / THOMASTON, CONN. / MADE IN U.S.A. — confirming the fittings as Plume & Atwood Manufacturing Company, the dominant American lamp-hardware maker from the 1870s through the early twentieth century. Their Eagle-pattern burners were the industry workhorse, fitted to tens of thousands of glass fonts across every major American glasshouse. The two lamps carry mismatched burners: one is a domed-cap Eagle, the other a flat-cap Eagle — both P&A, both correct for the form, but not strictly identical hardware. Clear glass chimneys are later replacements carrying Royal Craft / B&P Lamp Supply labels; they fit properly and present cleanly. Sold as a complete four-piece lot.

CONDITION

Good. Both fonts show finish wear and loss to the painted decoration — most evident on the reserves where handling has abraded the unfired paint over time. Brass fittings carry age toning, light tarnish, and minor surface corrosion consistent with use; the two burner caps differ in profile (one domed, one flat) and are not a matched set. Chimneys are later replacements, intact with no chips or cracks noted.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Each with Chimney: 19½" H × 5½" Diameter
• Burner Hardware: Plume & Atwood Mfg. Co. (P&A), Thomaston, Conn. — "EAGLE" pattern collars
• Note: The two burner caps are mismatched — one domed, one flat; both are P&A Eagle pattern
• Chimneys: Royal Craft Quality Lamp Glass, distributed by B&P Lamp Supply (later replacements)
• Total Pieces: 4 (2 lamps + 2 chimneys)
• Campbell's Soup Can (4" H) Shown for Scale — Not Included