This oil lamp is from the Yemen and is made from a recycled food tin and other small pieces of metal. It is of a rather different design to the lamps and funnels (see Collection Connections below) and is slightly older. We know this because the contents of the can were not printed on it, so it dates from a time when tins were identifiable by stuck on paper labels to identify their contents.

This is a delightful and cleverly designed lamp. Its lid is folded over and firmly pressed to the base and it has both a funnel and burner welded on to the top. This is a good design as it means that a separate funnel is not needed when the lamp needs to be refilled. It has a very delicate thin handle welded to one side. It is possible to increase the height of the protective covering around the wick, the burner, as there is an additional insert of folded metal which can be adjusted.

The lamp is designed to be used with paraffin (also known as kerosene).