German WWII Bakelite Carbide Bunker Lamp

On offer is an original WWII example that will appeal to militaria, lamp and Bakelite collectors! Whilst we can find no sign of a date it is profusely stamped including on the aluminium support clip on the back a Waffenamt mark so would have been manufactured between 1933-1945 and perhaps used to light a bunker in Hitler's 'Atlantikwall'. These lamps are both intricate yet beautifully engineered with the body being moulded from Bakelite and with the tank and other components being made from a base metal. The few examples of these we have seen tend to be either damaged or missing parts but this one appears complete and when it came in the bottom dish still contained the original carbide used to power the lamp and it appears untouched since WWII. Whilst the provenance of the piece has been lost down the years it seems probable it was recovered after WWII and brought back to the UK as a souvenir of the conflict.

The handle has a moulded groove to the centre and these are sometimes seen with a suspension hook attached. The handle is also embossed with a letter PAG in a circle which we believe to be a manufacturers code ; alongside is stamped 1608/4. Inside the front opening window is the sam3 code and 1451/3 whist the tray inside the carbide holder is marked 1452/A and a 2 below. The lamp reflector remains in place as well as the original glass windows to the front and side. These lamps also featured the facility to slide in metal plates to side and front to restrict light emission but this example is without. Not much more we can add other than it is small but beautifully formed! As with all our stock please drop us a mail via the enquiry screen if you would like to see a range of photographs to show the full details. Measured 9" (22 cm) with the handle in the folded position.