Orange Cobra Table Lamp

Materials: Orange and silver painted polyester round base & lampshade with a curved back. Made in the form of a cobra snake. Brass tube. Brass B22 socket.

Height: 32 cm / 12.59”

Width: 23 cm / 9.05”

Base: 14 x 16,5 cm / 5.51 x 6.49”

Electricity: 1 bulb B22, 1 x 40 watt maximum, 110/220 volt.
Not any type of light bulb can be used, the smaller the better.

Period: 2018.

Designer: To be appraised.

Manufacturer: To be appraised.

Other versions: This Cobra table lamp is probably a one off.

Counterfeit

This table lamp was sold as a lamp made in the 1970s, 1980s, but it is something completely different, it is brand new. It was acquired in Marseilles, France in the summer of 2018 on eBay.

When opening the box, the penetrating smell of fresh silver paint and polyester emerged. It was immediately clear that this could not be a vintage lamp.

The finish is sad and it is clearly cobbled together. The socket (pictures below) is not positioned correctly in the middle, so that a round light bulb touches the lamp and burns the paint. The orange freshly sprayed paint also ended up on the socket because it was badly taped. The air holes at the top have been drilled, but at the bottom you can see the burrs. When these photos were taken, fresh orange paint remained on the white paper.

CE

It is strange that someone spends so much time making this lamp and then does not finish it properly. In other words, this lamp was made to sell; a counterfeit. It was not made by someone as a “work of art”. And that would not be a problem if it really came from the 70s or 80s as advertised. But now it is a lamp that you can not plug into the socket because it does not meet the current standards. It has not been approved and does not have a CE label, what is mandatory.

The aforementioned wattage that can be used is therefore a conservative estimate based on the used wire and socket. The only thing that could be old, although they are also made in China, is the wire, switch and plug. They also look far too new to be good. But it is easy to get this from an old lamp or to buy it cheap at a flea market.

Complaint

The seller claims to be a professional lamp dealer and washes his hands of and only wants to repay it when it is returned, despite all arguments. Of course, the victim has to pay twice the shipping costs, in other words, paying the lamp twice as it did not cost a lot (fortunately). A complaint has been filed, but the seller remains silent. It is a pity that someone reveals his true colour for so little money. 

Conclusion

May this be a warning. There are already a lot of fake lamps on the market. Also, don’t count much on any help from eBay. Very rarely do they want to do anything to help the buyer. Long time sellers know that. Giving bad comments about an account does not help, a few days later it is removed on simple request of the seller. In other words, he can do what he wants. Buyers are outlawed. Don’t buy stuff without using Paypal or they can or will  do anything. You always have to solve your problems yourself, not easy or even impossible when you are deceived.