Murano Drunk Clown Table Lamp

Materials: Clown with a bottle in his hand made of crystal hand-blown Murano glass in many colours. Black and white twisted glass lamp post with a white opal glass lampshade and a black glass lid. Brass ring. Brass E14 socket with a ribbed porcelain ring.

Height: 47 cm / 18.50”

Width: ∅ 14 cm / 5.51”

Electricity: 1 bulb E14, 1 x 60 watt maximum, 110/220 volt.
Not any type of lamp can be used. Preferably a small bulb, white/opaque or clear/bright.

Period: 1950s until now.

Designer: To be appraised.

Manufacturer: To be appraised.

Other versions: This Murano drunk clown table lamp exists in many variations.

These clowns were very popular from the 1950s to the 1970s, and glass factories all over the world produced them. In Europe they were made in Murano and in several other places in Italy, but also in Bodenmais, Bavaria, Germany by Joska, in the former Yugoslavia, and elsewhere. Today they are still being made in China, so caution is advised.

According to a well-known story, these clowns were made at the end of the day from leftover glass. Other small decorative objects were supposedly made in the evening as well. This is probably more legend than reality. Glass furnaces burn 24/7, colours often take days to prepare properly, and reaching the exact working temperature is a slow and precise process.

All the electrical parts of this clown lamp are Italian and date from the 1960s. They were made by the VLM Components company from Buccinasco, near Milan. Presumably, this lamp itself is also Italian and was made in Murano.

One of the most famous Murano glass masters, Pino Signoretto (1944–2017), also created stunning clown figures. They are, of course, in a completely different league, as Signoretto’s clowns are refined works of art.